Veteran's Protest Ends in Arrest and Hospitalisation
A 70-year-old US Air Force veteran is contemplating legal action against federal authorities after facing arrest and injury during a protest against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations. Dana Briggs had all charges against him dismissed, but not before experiencing what he describes as unjust treatment during a demonstration in Broadview, Illinois.
The US Department of Justice initially charged Briggs with felony assault on a federal officer, claiming he made physical contact with an agent's arm during the protest. However, video evidence contradicted these allegations, showing masked ICE agents advancing on the elderly veteran and knocking him to the ground.
Charges Dropped After Video Evidence Reviewed
US Magistrate Judge Gabriel A Fuentes agreed to dismiss the case after reviewing body-worn camera footage from the agents involved. The court had permitted the government to keep this video from public disclosure during the proceedings.
In court documents filed to dismiss the case, Andrew Boutros, the US attorney for the northern district of Illinois, provided no explanation for the sudden reversal. Assistant US attorney Joseph Fitzpatrick later stated that the office maintains a continuous review process for all cases, saying this helps "ensure that the interests of justice are served in each and every case".
Briggs described his experience in detail for the first time, revealing that before being knocked over, he had been questioning the federal agents protecting the Chicago-area ICE facility. "How do you go home at night and explain to your community and family what you are doing to other people who look like you?" he recalled asking them.
Following his arrest, Briggs was transported to Loyola University Medical Center, where he received treatment while handcuffed to a hospital bed for cuts and bruises on both forearms and wrists sustained from being knocked down and restrained with zip ties.
Broader Pattern of Veteran Treatment Emerges
Briggs's case represents one of eight identified instances where US military veterans have faced arrest and injury during confrontations with federal agents over Trump administration policies. Another veteran, Afghanistan war veteran Sean Charles Dunn, was acquitted earlier this month after a jury found he did not commit assault when he threw a sandwich at a Customs and Border Protection agent in Washington DC.
Jose Vasquez, executive director of the veterans' advocacy group Common Defense, emphasised that the dismissal of charges against Briggs and the acquittal in Dunn's case "should remind prosecutors and the public alike that dissent is not a crime". Vasquez added that Briggs was "exercising the same courage and moral conviction he once showed in uniform".
In a separate incident in Portland, video evidence shows an agent grabbing Afghanistan war veteran Daryn Herzberg by the hair and slamming his face into the ground multiple times. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson claimed Herzberg was "well known for acts of violence outside the ICE facility", allegations his attorney strongly denies. Herzberg has not been charged with any crime.
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, did not respond to inquiries about Briggs's case or the broader pattern of veteran treatment during protests.
