A federal judge in Oregon has issued a preliminary injunction restricting federal officers from using teargas and other chemical munitions at protests outside the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) building in Portland. The ruling, delivered on Monday by US District Judge Michael Simon, follows a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon on behalf of protesters and freelance journalists.
The plaintiffs, including a demonstrator known for wearing a chicken costume, an elderly married couple, and two freelance journalists, testified about being subjected to chemical or projectile munitions. Judge Simon wrote that the plaintiffs provided videos showing Department of Homeland Security officers spraying pepper spray directly into the faces of peaceful protesters and firing teargas and pepper-ball munitions into crowds without prior dispersal warnings.
The judge described the conduct as 'objectively chilling' and found that it violated the protesters' First Amendment rights. The order prohibits federal agents from using chemical or projectile munitions unless someone poses an imminent threat of physical harm. It also bans firing munitions at the head, neck, or torso unless deadly force is legally justified.
Additionally, officers cannot use pepper spray indiscriminately against groups; they must target only individuals engaged in violent unlawful conduct or actively resisting arrest. The judge specified that trespassing, refusing to move, or refusing to obey dispersal orders constitute passive, not active, resistance. The preliminary injunction will remain in effect while the lawsuit proceeds.
