U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE, agents on top of the Broadview ICE Detention Center in Chicago on Sept. 9, 2025. (Paul Goyette /Wikimedia Commons/ CC BY 4.0)
By Jessica Corbett
Common Dreams
Illinois and Minnesota, along with targeted cities in both states, have filed a pair of federal lawsuits in hopes of stopping deadly Trump administration operations intended to hunt down and deport immigrants.
Trump has sent thousands of U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents — including from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) — to the Twin Cities in recent days for an operation that resulted in the death of Renee Good, a U.S. citizen and mother fatally shot by a federal officer in Minneapolis.
Amid the mounting violence by federal agents in Minnesota and the Trump administration’s related propaganda — which have fueled protests across the country — the state’s Democratic attorney general, Keith Ellison, plus the cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, took aim at DHS, CBP, ICE, and various agency leaders in a U.S. district court.
“Defendants claim this unprecedented surge of immigration agents is necessary to fight fraud,” says the complaint, filed in the District of Minnesota on Monday.
“In reality, the massive deployment of armed agents to Minnesota bears no connection to that stated objective and instead reflects an alarming escalation of the Trump administration’s retaliatory actions towards the state.”
In a Monday statement, Ellison stressed that “the unlawful deployment of thousands of armed, masked, and poorly trained federal agents is hurting Minnesota.”
“People are being racially profiled, harassed, terrorized and assaulted,” he noted.
“Schools have gone into lockdown. Businesses have been forced to close. Minnesota police are spending countless hours dealing with the chaos ICE is causing. This federal invasion of the Twin Cities has to stop, so today I am suing DHS to bring it to an end.”
Today, I joined with @MayorFrey and Mayor Her to announce a joint lawsuit to end the unlawful and unprecedented surge of ICE agents in Minnesota.
People are being racially profiled, harassed, terrorized, and assaulted.
It has to stop. pic.twitter.com/d2uCeyGiKv
— Attorney General Keith Ellison (@AGEllison) January 13, 2026
As footage of an ICE officer shooting Good began to circulate online last week, Democratic Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey publicly told the agency to “get the fuck out” of his city. On Monday, he added that “when federal actions undermine public safety, harm our neighbors, and violate constitutional rights, we have a responsibility to act. That’s exactly what we’re doing today.”
We’re suing the federal government to end its unconstitutional and dangerous immigration enforcement presence in Minneapolis – marked by excessive force and racial profiling. We aim to restore order; not block immigration enforcement. https://t.co/ie5OEQkh9b pic.twitter.com/vSaLLS4zS3
— City of Minneapolis (@CityMinneapolis) January 13, 2026
Trump’s “Operation Metro Surge” in Minnesota this year followed the September launch of “Operation Midway Blitz” in Illinois, which targeted Chicago and its suburbs — where immigration agents have also shot multiple people in recent months, including one fatally.
“Border Patrol agents and ICE officers have acted as occupiers rather than officers of the law,” Democratic Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul declared Monday. “They randomly, and often violently, question residents. Without warrants or probable cause, they brutally detain citizens and noncitizens alike.”
“They use tear gas and other chemical weapons against bystanders, injuring dozens, including children, the elderly and local police officers,” he continued. “I filed this lawsuit to stand up for the safety of the people of Illinois and the sovereignty of our state.”
Today, my office has taken significant action to put an end to federal agents’ lawlessness in the state of Illinois. Along with the @chicago-city.bsky.social, I have filed a lawsuit against DHS, ICE, and CBP: https://vimeo.com/1153715406?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci
The 103-page suit, filed in the Northern District of Illinois, followed another from the state and city of Chicago that blocked Trump’s attempt to deploy the National Guard in the area, as he had done in Los Angeles, California and Washington, D.C. At the end of last month, the president announced troops would leave Chicago, LA, and Portland, Oregon, but also said that “we will come back.”
Democratic Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker — a frequent critic of the president — said Monday that “Illinois is once again taking Donald Trump to court to hold his administration accountable for their unlawful tactics, unnecessary escalations, and flagrant abuses of power.”
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson emphasized that “these actions weren’t just unlawful; they were cruel, needlessly inflicting fear and harm on our communities.”
“My administration will forcefully protect our residents’ rights and hold anyone accountable who abuses their power,” Johnson pledged. “Nobody is above the law. This lawsuit is about ensuring there is accountability for the lawless actions of the Trump administration and justice for the Chicagoans who have been wronged.”
Nobody is above the law. My administration will forcefully protect our residents’ rights and hold anyone accountable who abuses their power. pic.twitter.com/woKS0l859a
— Mayor Brandon Johnson (@ChicagosMayor) January 12, 2026
In statements to multiple media outlets, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin made clear that the Trump administration plans to fight back against both states’ moves. She called the Illinois filing “a baseless lawsuit,” and said of the Minnesota case, “We have the Constitution on our side on this, and we look forward to proving that in court.”
Meanwhile, critics of the Trump administration, and particularly its immigration operations, welcomed the new suits.
Congresswoman Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.), a daughter of immigrants, wrote in a social media post about the suit in her state that
“DHS’s terror force is the greatest threat to our safety. Their militarized invasion of our cities puts us all at risk. They need to be defunded. They need to be held accountable. In the streets, in Congress, and in courts, we will fight to protect our communities, and we will win.”
Jessica Corbett is a senior editor and staff writer for Common Dreams.
This article is from Common Dreams.
Views expressed in this article and may or may not reflect those of Consortium News.
Please Donate to CN‘s Winter Fund Drive 
The Artistic Prenteder or Presenter in the Job of the Job .
Is the head of headhunters just a snob ?
If I were younger and more in tune .
Would I approach with resume and suit ?
Or would I look more desirable arriving , better odds of hire , carrying a shovel or a broom ?
A clipboard at the ready, my wallet on a chain , maybe spandex with a coffee stain .
A pencil in my pocket , boots or shiny shoes ?
What would the dressup look like if it was on zoom ?
Would a ten gallon hat be oversize ?
Would I ask the questions or just answer one or two ?
I see the App shows your hearts desire .
This job descrition disqualies you now , A pulse is not required now and I say this with respect , your too overqualified to be a plow as a ploughboy sire .
When hire feels like the calm before the fire .
With the Baby Boomer crossing the threshold in regards to:
The fact that recent healthcare costs/events like walkout/s .
The cost of healthcare this aged care vs those who lost/cost in insurance despair .
The population trend now vs then as well as trajectory inception.
Put all puzzle/s/|d pieces together in a story if one can .
———-
Is there a story here yet to tell or unfold ?
I hear much concern in a *””Nursing””Home””Tome””
*note economic/health/|care of context url/|s , use long/|er|+ output in reply-<
———————–
I read some writer who talked about having to bring the dead out each day ?
What if the future holds a Very ICE like task ?