Colorado DA Charges CBP Officer In Protester Clash Despite DHS Immunity Claim
The clash traces to years of expanded federal immigration enforcement and rising friction between local authorities and federal agents. States and cities have tried criminal probes of on-duty agents in recent years while federal officials have pushed back. That tug-of-war set the stage for protests and confrontations outside immigration facilities that brought one Durango incident into the courts.
On the night of Oct. 27-28, protesters gathered outside a Colorado Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing center in Durango. Bystander video shows a masked Customs and Border Protection officer grabbing and pulling protester Franci Stagi across the street. Stagi, also identified as Anne Francesca Stagi, says Officer Nicholas Rice grabbed her hair, put her in a chokehold, and threw her down an embankment, causing ongoing arm pain. The criminal complaint charges Rice with misdemeanor third-degree assault and with criminal mischief over alleged damage to Stagi's cellphone. That complaint does not mention a chokehold. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation opened a probe at the Durango police chief's request, an action described as unusual if not unprecedented.
Early coverage centered on the incident's facts, video, and the local charges without stressing broader legal stakes. Later reporting framed the case as a potential test of Supremacy Clause immunity for federal agents and elevated federal officials' public resistance to state prosecutions. The Deputy Attorney General said late in 2025 that arrests of federal officers performing their duties would be "illegal and futile." The Department of Homeland Security has said states lack authority to investigate such cases and that only federal agencies should probe federal officers.
Colorado's 6th Judicial District Attorney Eric P. Murray filed the charges against U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer Nicholas Rice. The charges stem from the Oct. 27-28 incident outside the Durango ICE facility and include third-degree assault and criminal mischief. Bystander footage and witness accounts differ over whether Rice used a chokehold, while the video shows a brief scuffle and Stagi being taken to the ground. Prosecutors pressing the case would force a court to weigh state criminal authority against federal immunity claims, making this matter a likely test case. The matter also joins a string of recent local actions, including Minnesota and Chicago prosecutions and fights over access to evidence, all raising questions about oversight and hiring at immigration agencies.
📌 Key Facts
- Durango District Attorney Eric P. Murray charged U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer Nicholas Rice with misdemeanor third-degree assault and criminal mischief over an incident during immigration enforcement activity in Durango between Oct. 27–28.
- The charges include alleged damage to protester Franci (Anne Francesca) Stagi’s cellphone; Stagi alleges Rice grabbed her hair, put her in a chokehold, threw her down an embankment and she continues to report arm pain, though the filed criminal complaint does not mention a chokehold.
- Multiple bystander videos show a masked agent grabbing and pulling Stagi across the street; additional video description notes Stagi appearing to grab the officer’s shoulder before she is taken to the ground.
- The Colorado Bureau of Investigation opened the probe at the Durango police chief’s request — an action described as unusual or unprecedented — and the incident occurs against a backdrop of Colorado laws that have prohibited or severely limited chokeholds and neck restraints by police.
- The Department of Homeland Security issued a formal statement calling the state prosecution 'unlawful' and a 'political stunt,' asserting that states lack authority to investigate federal officers and that federal officers acting in the course of their duties can only be investigated by federal agencies.
- The case is being framed as a potential test of Supremacy Clause–based immunity for federal agents; Justice Department officials, including Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, have said arrests of federal officers performing their duties would be 'illegal and futile.'
- Reporters place the Durango prosecution in a broader pattern of state and local actions against immigration agents — citing a Minnesota case charging ICE officer Gregory Donnell Morgan Jr. with two counts of second-degree assault, a Minnesota lawsuit seeking access to evidence in multiple immigration‑related shootings, protests over other incidents, and concerns about ICE hiring and vetting during rapid expansion.
📰 Source Timeline (4)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- Confirms the DA as Eric P. Murray of Colorado's 6th Judicial District and names the charged officer as U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer Nicholas Rice.
- Specifies the exact charges as third-degree assault and criminal mischief for an incident during immigration enforcement activity between October 27–28 in Durango.
- Adds DHS’s formal statement calling the state prosecution 'unlawful' and a 'political stunt' and asserting that federal officers acting in the course of their duties can only be investigated by federal agencies.
- Provides additional description of the video sequence, including Stagi appearing to grab the officer’s shoulder before she is taken to the ground, and notes her ongoing pain claim.
- Article explicitly frames the Durango assault charge as a potential test of Supremacy Clause-based immunity for federal agents acting in the line of duty.
- Colorado is noted as one of several states that have prohibited or severely limited chokeholds and neck restraints by police officers, adding policy context to the incident.
- U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche is quoted from late 2025 saying arrests of federal officers performing their duties would be "illegal and futile," underscoring DOJ's stance.
- A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson asserts that "states do not have the authority to investigate such cases" and that federal officers acting in the course of their duties can only be investigated by other federal agencies.
- The story situates the Colorado case within a broader pattern of state and local actions: felony assault charges for an ICE agent in Minnesota, a misdemeanor battery case against an off-duty ICE agent near Chicago, and protests over a fatal off-duty ICE shooting in California.
- The Minnesota case is detailed: ICE officer Gregory Donnell Morgan Jr. is charged with two counts of second-degree assault for allegedly pointing a gun at occupants of a car after a swerving incident on a Minneapolis-area highway.
- Minnesota officials are suing the Trump administration to gain access to evidence for investigations into three shootings during the immigration crackdown, including two fatal cases.
- The article highlights concerns about ICE hiring during a rapid expansion, noting evidence that applicants with questionable histories were not fully vetted.
- Identifies the officer as Nicholas Rice and the protester as Franci (Anne Francesca) Stagi.
- Details that multiple bystander videos show a masked agent grabbing and pulling Stagi across the street.
- Reports Stagi's allegation that Rice grabbed her hair, put her in a chokehold, and threw her down an embankment, causing ongoing arm pain.
- Specifies that Colorado Bureau of Investigation opened the probe at the Durango police chief's request, described as unusual if not unprecedented.
- Notes Rice is charged with misdemeanor third-degree assault and criminal mischief over alleged damage to Stagi's cellphone, and that the complaint does not mention a chokehold.
- Adds broader legal context about federal officers' protections and recent Justice Department statements invoking the Supremacy Clause against state prosecutions.