Minneapolis family demands judicial warrant as federal agents bust door during raid
Questions surround Liberian native arrested by ICE at Minneapolis home
Questions surround the ICE arrest of a Liberian native at his Minneapolis home over the weekend. The man's legal team says ICE didn't have a judicial warrant to enter the home, but they used a battering ram to get in anyway.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Loved ones are demanding the immediate release of Garrison Gibson from ICE custody after armed federal agents used a door-breaching battering ram to arrest him inside his Minneapolis home.
Gibson’s legal team has since filed a habeas petition, arguing the arrest violated his constitutional rights because ICE did not have a judicial warrant.
Arrest caught on camera
What we know:
Video captured the arrest of Garrison Gibson inside his north Minneapolis home on Sunday morning.
Armed federal agents used a battering ram to enter the house after his family demanded to see a judicial warrant.
His loved ones documented the unfolding immigration enforcement operation live on Facebook.
Within 24 hours, Gibson’s legal team had filed a habeas petition, asking a federal judge to release him immediately.
"Any American should be terrified by that because that is such an egregious violation of the Fourth Amendment," Gibson’s immigration attorney, Marc Prokosch, told FOX 9. "That is from our Bill of Rights. To see a battering ram coming to the front door of your house with a 9-year-old inside is just terrifying."
Living under ICE supervision
Dig deeper:
According to court filings, Gibson is a 38-year-old Liberian citizen, who has a final immigration removal order dating back to 2009.
But he has lived under ICE supervision for more than 15 years with a past drug conviction that has been cleared from his record.
Prokosch says Gibson had just checked in with ICE officials approximately two weeks prior and had another meeting on the calendar at the end of the month.
But now he questions the tactics of federal law enforcement.
"Why this use of force?" asked Prokosch. "Why not just wait for him to come back because he is not like a violent criminal."
Behind bars in Freeborn County
What's next:
Attorneys for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have been given a couple more days to file a response to the allegations before the judge ultimately rules on Gibson’s habeas petition.
The department has not responded to the FOX 9 Investigators’ request for comment.
In the meantime, the judge has ordered DHS not to move Gibson.
His family reports that he is currently being held at the Freeborn County jail in Albert Lea.