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By DAVID RISING

BANGKOK (AP) — Iranian demonstrators’ ability to get details of bloody nationwide protests out to the world has been given a strong boost, with SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service dropping its fees to allow more people to circumvent the Tehran government’s strongest attempt ever to prevent information from spilling outside its borders, activists said Wednesday.

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The move by the American aerospace company run by Elon Musk follows the complete shutdown of telecommunications and internet access to Iran’s 85 million people on Jan. 8, as protests expanded over the Islamic Republic’s faltering economy and the collapse of its currency.

SpaceX has not officially announced the decision and did not respond to a request for comment, but activists told The Associated Press that Starlink has been available for free to anyone in Iran with the receivers since Tuesday and that the company has gone even further by pushing a firmware update to help circumvent government efforts to jam the satellite signals.

The moves by Starlink came two days after President Donald Trump told reporters on Air Force One that he was going to reach out to Musk to ask for Starlink help for protesters, a call later confirmed by his press secretary, though it’s not clear if that is what prompted Musk to act.

“Starlink has been crucial,” said Mehdi Yahyanejad, an Iranian whose nonprofit Net Freedom Pioneers has helped smuggle units into Iran, pointing to video that emerged Sunday showing rows of bodies at a forensic medical center near Tehran.

“That showed a few hundred bodies on the ground, that came out because of Starlink,” he said in an interview from Los Angeles. “I think that those videos from the center pretty much changed everyone’s understanding of what’s happening because they saw it with their own eyes.”

Since the outbreak of demonstrations Dec. 28, the death toll has risen to more than 2,500 people, primarily protesters but also security personnel, according to the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency.

Starlink is banned in Iran by telecommunication regulations, as the country never authorized the importation, sale or use of the devices. Activists fear they could be accused of helping the U.S. or Israel by using Starlink and charged with espionage, which can carry the death penalty.

Cat-and-mouse as authorities hunt for Starlink devices

The first units were smuggled into Iran in 2022 during protests over the country’s mandatory headscarf law, after Musk got the Biden administration to exempt the Starlink service from Iran sanctions.

Since then, more than 50,000 units are estimated to have been sneaked in, with people going to great lengths to conceal them, using virtual private networks while on the system to hide IP addresses and taking other precautions, said Ahmad Ahmadian, the executive director of Holistic Resilience, a Los Angeles-based organization that was responsible for getting some of the first Starlink units into Iran.

Starlink is a global internet network that relies on some 10,000 satellites orbiting Earth. Subscribers need to have equipment, including an antenna that requires a line of sight to the satellite, so must be deployed in the open, where it could be spotted by authorities. Many Iranians disguise them as solar panels, Ahmadian said.

After efforts to shut down communications during the 12-day war with Israel in June proved to be not terribly effective, Iranian security services have taken more “extreme tactics” now to jam Starlink’s radio signals and GPS systems, Ahmadian said in a phone interview. After Holistic Resilience passed on reports to SpaceX, Ahmadian said, the company pushed its firmware update to avoid jamming.

Security services also rely on informers to tell them who might be using Starlink, and search internet and social media traffic for signs it has been used. There have been reports they have raided apartments with satellite dishes.

“There has always been a cat-and-mouse game,” said Ahmadian, who fled Iran in 2012 after serving time in prison for student activism. “The government is using every tool in its toolbox.”

Still, Ahmadian noted that the government jamming attempts had only been effective in certain urban areas, suggesting that security services lack the resources to block Starlink more broadly.

A free Starlink could increase the flow of information out of Iran

Iran did begin to allow people to call out internationally on Tuesday via mobile phones, but calls from outside the country into Iran remain blocked.

Compared to protests in 2019, when lesser measures by the government were able to effectively stifle information reaching the rest of the world for more than a week, Ahmadian said the proliferation of Starlink has made it impossible to prevent communications. He said the flow could increase now that the service has been made free.

“This time around they really shut it down, even fixed landlines were not working,” he said. “But despite this, the information was coming out, and it also shows how distributed this community of Starlink users is in the country.”

Musk has made Starlink free for use during several natural disasters, and Ukraine has relied heavily on the service since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. It was initially funded by SpaceX and later through an American government contract.

POKROVSK, UKRAINE – FEBRUARY 9: A Starlink device is pictured which connects the brigade to the internet as servicemen of the 155th Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine operate a French-made CAESAR 155mm self-propelled howitzers on the frontline near Pokrovsk on February 9, 2025 in Pokrovsk, Ukraine. The 155th Brigade has been trained by the French Armed Forces. (Photo by Pierre Crom/Getty Images)

Musk’s involvement had raised concerns over the power of such a system being in the hands of one person, after he refused to extend Ukraine’s Starlink coverage to support a planned Ukrainian counterattack in Russian-occupied Crimea.

As a proponent of Starlink for Iran, Ahmadian said the Crimea decision was a wake-up call for him, but that he couldn’t see any reason why Musk might be inclined to act similarly in Iran.

“Looking at the political Elon, I think he would have more interest … in a free Iran as a new market,” he said.

Starlink’s moves to circumvent Tehran’s efforts to shut down communications is being watched closely around the world. The satellite service has expanded rapidly in recent years, securing licenses in more than 120 countries, including some with authoritarian rulers who have persecuted journalists and protesters.

Julia Voo, who heads the International Institute for Strategic Studies’ Cyber Power and Future Conflict Program in Singapore, said there is a risk of activists becoming reliant on one company as a lifeline, as it “creates a single point of failure,” though currently there are no comparable alternatives.

China has been exploring ways to hunt and destroy Starlink satellites, and Voo said the more effective Starlink proves itself at penetrating “government-mandated terrestrial blackouts, the more states will be observing.”

“It’s just going to result in more efforts to broaden controls over various ways of communication, for those in Iran and everywhere else watching,” she said.

Associated Press writers Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel, and Bernard Condon in New York contributed to this report.

People Are Sharing The Subtle Red Flags They Look For When Seeing A Home For The First Time  BuzzFeed

MIAMI — Observations and other notes of interest from Tuesday night’s 127-121 victory over the Phoenix Suns:

– We appear to have reached the crossroads again where Erik Spoelstra does not believe Kel’el Ware and Bam Adebayo can play together.

– At least not on a highly productive basis.

– Which many metrics confirm.

– But with Adebayo back with his offense in this one, it again appears to be nothing more going forward than Short Minutes Theater for Ware.

– Which is fine if the thought is he solely is capable of contributing as a backup center.

– Performances this season say otherwise.

– It is one thing to protect Ware on the trade market as a valued asset.

– It is another thing not to play him as one.

– No, it doesn’t mean Ware has to start.

– But it might mean that the Nikola Jovic minutes also go to Ware.

– There has to be a way to carve out more.

– If even solely for development.

– Which means Spoelstra at least relenting for some Adebayo-Ware.

– Instead, Adebayo back in and Ware out early in the fourth.

– With Ware with just 16 minutes of action.

– Nonetheless with 10 points and five rebounds.

– Double the minutes and the math speaks for itself.

– Yes, Adebayo was good, very good in this one. But it’s not as if Ware was minimal-minutes bad.

– With Norman Powell back after missing a game with lower-back soreness, the Heat went back to a lineup of Powell, Adebayo, Andrew Wiggins, Tyler Herro and Davion Mitchell.

– That lineup entered 2-3.

– The Suns opened with a lineup of Collin Gillespie, Devin Booker, Dillon Brooks, Royce O’Neale and Mark Williams.

– Booker then was forced to the locker room with an injury late in the third period, before returning in the fourth.

– With Mitchell retreating earlier to the Heat locker room with a game-ending shoulder contusion.

– Jaime Jaquez Jr. again was first off the Heat bench.

– With Pelle Larsson and Ware then following together.

– That again had Dru Smith out of the initial mix, before entering for the first time with 54.2 seconds left in the first half.

– As Kasparas Jakucionis looked on, again a spectator.

– In entering on a three-game losing streak, Spoelstra said one priority was clear.

– “We just have to be better at sustaining,” he said, lamenting recent third-quarter struggles.

– Didn’t happen, with a 20-4 Suns run at the top of the third.

– Spoelstra added, “I would say the largest part of our team right now is being able to sustain our style of play.”

– Spoelstra then clarified to avoid misconception.

– “That doesn’t just mean the pace, what everybody thinks about,” he said. “It is our type of defense, the activity level, the physicality. And then, yes, offensively doing things with a fullcourt pace and a halfcourt pace and intention, when we do get forced into the halfcourt.”

– The sky, Spoelstra said, is not falling.

– “We’ve shown more times a game that we can play well, and then there’s these pockets where we just haven’t been able to sustain,” he said. “But I would say the last month or five weeks, we’ve only had two duds of games.”

– As in the losses to the lowly Kings and Pacers.

– “The rest of them,” he said, “we’ve played really well for large stretches of games.”

– Spoelstra added, “To me, that says we should have more wins than we have right now. But this inability to really sustain and have that consistency more throughout the course of the game has really, really hurt us. And we have to grow from that.”

– Through it all, a level of hope.

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– “I think we will. Our guys understand that. We have a competitive group,” he said. “We have a group that has big aspirations, that wants to win, wants to move up in the East.”

– Spoelstra was asked before the game why this has worked so well this season with Powell.

– “He still has that kind of chip on his shoulder and willingness to play a role of who he used to be, but an ambition to try to do more and be more, given opportunities,” Spoelstra said. “He’s found a nice balance in that.”

– Spoelstra said the Suns, in exceeding expectations, are where the Heat thought they could be.

– “We view them as probably similar to us. I just think they’ve done that at a higher level and more consistent,” he said. “I think they’ve been pretty steady and steadfast in who they are. They defend at a higher level, they share the ball, they play a collective game, and they don’t fatigue. They do it night in and night out, and that’s given them the opportunity to be plus nine, where we hoped we would be at this point.”

– He added, “They’ve done it, and that’s a good example for us.”

– Of the Heat’s offense, Suns coach Jordan Ott was complimentary.

– “Kind of similar to OKC in a different way, but they’re going to come right to you, and they’re going to be aggressive,” he said. “They’re physical, trying to get to the rim.”

MIAMI — Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra began the night speaking about recent quality pockets of play, even as his team entered on a three-game losing streak. He also warned of how third-period lulls had produced that skid.

So again on Monday, quality pockets of play.

And, again, a third-quarter lull.

This time, though, a different final chapter, with Bam Adebayo and Norman Powell draining late 3-pointers to end the skid and produce a 127-121 victory Tuesday night over the Phoenix Suns at Kaseya Center.

“It was good to see us overcome the third quarter. There was a little bit of a glitch there,” a relieved Spoelstra said afterward.

From a 20-point lead early in the third period, the Heat had to fight to the finish, with the fight there on a night Adebayo found his shooting stroke and Powell returned from a one-game absence due to back pain.

Adebayo led the Heat with 29 points and nine rebounds, supported by 27 points from Powell and 23 from Tyler Herro.

“It was good to see us come out on the winning side versus a very competitive team that was making plays,” Spoelstra said.

Up next on this three-game home stand is a Thursday night game against the Boston Celtics.

“We had the right intentions coming out, trying to play the right way, play with the right energy,” Powell said. “I just liked our mentality and the way we stuck together and kept fighting and didn’t cave in.”

Five Degrees of Heat from Tuesday night’s game:

1. Game flow: The Heat led 36-28 after the first quarter, went up 18 in the second period before taking a 71-54 lead into the intermission.

But that is when the Suns outscored the Heat 20-4 to open the third period, ultimately resulting in a 92-92 tie going into the fourth.

With 9:11 to play, the Suns then took their first lead, at 101-99, eventually pushing their lead to seven.

A pair of Adebayo 3-pointers then cut the deficit to 114-113 with 2:27 to play, with another putting the Heat up 116-114 with 1:49 left.

“The ball found the right karma,” Spoelstra said of Adebayo’s 3-pointers. “I thought he earned it, to have a great night. He just really did.”

From there, it was tied twice, before a Powell 3-pointer put the Heat up 121-118 with 48.2 seconds to play.

“I thought tonight we did a great job of holding on to the rope,” Powell said, “trusting one another, continuing to fight, continuing to make winning plays down the stretch of the game.”

A pair of Suns turnovers followed, leaving the Heat in possession up three with 11.5 seconds to play, effectively ending it.

“The fourth quarter was terrific,” Spoelstra said, “just from a competitive standpoint and the mental toughness to come back.”

2. Bam back: After a miserable stretch of low scoring and missed shots, Adebayo took and made the Heat’s first two shots, then moving to 4 of 4 from the field and 2 of 2 on 3-pointers, scoring 10 of the Heat’s first 21 points.

Adebayo entered having scored in single digits in two of his three previous games, including six points in Sunday night’s loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Adebayo’s 16 points at halftime match his high over the previous 11 appearances.

Spoelstra also noted the defense and leadership at the moments of truth.

“He was basically doing everything,” Spoelstra said. “So he filled up the box score in all the statistical ways, but then all the winning and tangible ways, as well. And that’s why I say the karma of the game, it found him.”

Adebayo said he had no doubts of better days ahead.

“It feels great to see the ball go in,” he said. “I’ve been through a slump two weeks, and you don’t overreact to it.”

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3. Tyler time: Meanwhile, Herro continued with his ease of offense in his fourth game back after being sidelined since Dec. 9 with a toe contusion.

Herro then got a chance as the focus of the Heat offense when Powell was forced to the bench with his fifth foul with 5:02 to play.

Herro closed 8 of 18 from the field, and made it work alongside Powell.

“The synergy will be there if we just can consistently play the way we know we need to play,” Spoelstra said of the Herro-Powell pairing.

Of continuing to regain his stride, Herro said, “Just continuing to play the right way and just making the right plays for each other, leaning on each other.”

4. Powell plays: Sidelined Sunday by lower-back soreness, Powell returned to the mix, which required another Spoelstra shuffle.

This time it was Powell back into a starting lineup alongside Adebayo, Herro, Andrew Wiggins and Davion Mitchell.

Pelle Larsson had started Sunday in place of Powell.

The revised mix had Dru Smith out of the initial rotation, as was the case when Powell last played, in Saturday’s loss in Indiana.

Through it all, Kel’el Ware played his third consecutive game off the bench.

As for working alongside Herro, Powell said he sees only positives.

“We’re just going to keep working,” Powell said. “We’re both confident, not only in our own abilities, but in each other. We’re talking to each other out the course of the game. We’re talking to each other on the bench.”

5. Mitchell goes out: Mitchell took a jolt to his left shoulder fighting through a screen early in the third quarter. With his left arm hanging at his side, he then scored in transition on the next possession.

But with 9:07 left in the third quarter, after being called for his fourth foul, Mitchell went to the locker room, replaced by Smith.

He closed with nine points and six assists in his 19 minutes.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Tre Donaldson scored 23 points, Malik Reneau recorded a double-double and Miami took control in the second half to beat Notre Dame 81-69 on Tuesday night.

Reneau scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to go with five steals, Shelton Henderson added 17 points and Dante Allen had 11 points for Miami (15-2, 4-0 ACC), which shot 50% (29 for 58).

Jalen Haralson scored 18 points and reserve Sir Mohammed had 15 points for Notre Dame (10-7, 1-3), which has lost four of its last five.

The Hurricanes used a 17-5 run in the first six minutes of the second half to turn a 39-all halftime score into a 56-44 advantage. Donaldson made 4 of 5 shot attempts and scored nine points during that span.

It took nearly 10 minutes for the Irish to score 10 points in the second half. Notre Dame could only get within seven points on two occasions in the last nine minutes.

The Hurricanes won their 10th straight game, the first time the program has accomplished the feat in eight seasons.

Up next

Miami travels to face 22nd-ranked Clemson on Saturday.

By ERIC TUCKER

WASHINGTON (AP) — Multiple Americans who were detained in Venezuela have been released, the Trump administration said Tuesday.

“We welcome the release of detained Americans in Venezuela,” the State Department said.

“This is an important step in the right direction by the interim authorities.” It comes after the U.S. captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in a stunning nighttime raid earlier this month.

The head of Venezuela’s national assembly, Jorge Rodríguez, said last week that a “significant number” of Venezuelan and foreigners imprisoned in the country would be released as a gesture to “seek peace” following the military operation that deposed Maduro.

As of Tuesday evening, the Venezuela human rights group Foro Penal had confirmed 56 prisoners it said were detained for political reasons had been freed. The group criticized the lack of government transparency over the releases. Venezuela’s government negated the organization’s count, and reported a far higher figure of 400 Tuesday afternoon.

But the government did not provide evidence of the releases or a time range in which they were carried out, nor did it identify those freed, making it impossible to determine whether those freed were behind bars for political or other reasons.

In July, Venezuela released 10 jailed U.S. citizens and permanent residents in exchange for getting home scores of migrants deported by the United States to El Salvador under the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.

NEW YORK — Left-hander Ryan Weathers was acquired by the New York Yankees from the Miami Marlins on Tuesday for four prospects, a move to bolster a rotation that will be missing Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón when the season starts.

Miami received outfielders Brendan Jones and Dillon Lewis and infielders Dylan Jasso and Juan Matheus.

Weathers, 26, was 2-2 with a 3.99 ERA in eight starts last year in his second straight injury-shortened season. He missed time with a strained left flexor, made his season debut on May 14, then didn’t pitch for Miami between June 7 and Sept. 11 because of a left lat strain.

He was 5-6 with a 3.63 ERA over 16 starts in 2024, when he was sidelined by a strained left index finger. He is a son of former Yankee David Weathers.

Eligible for arbitration for the first time, Weathers agreed last week to a $1.35 million, one-year contract. He is on track to become eligible for free agency after the 2028 World Series.

New York’s rotation projects to include Max Fried, Cam Schlittler, Will Warren and Luis Gil.

Cole is expected to return to the Yankees in May or June following Tommy John surgery on March 11, and Rodón is projected back in late April or May after surgery on Oct. 15 to remove loose bodies in his left elbow and shave a bone spur.

The Yankees re-signed Ryan Yarbrough for pitching depth and have a pending agreement to re-sign Paul Blackburn.

Miami dealt its second pitcher in a week after sending Edward Cabrera to the Chicago Cubs.

By GRAHAM LEE BREWER

The president of Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota on Tuesday called for the immediate release of tribal members who were detained at a homeless encampment by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Minnesota last week.

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Three of the four Oglala Sioux Tribe members who were arrested in Minneapolis on Friday have been transferred to an ICE facility at Fort Snelling, President Frank Star Comes Out said in a statement released with a memorandum sent to federal immigration authorities.

“The Oglala Sioux Tribe’s memorandum makes clear that ‘tribal citizens are not aliens’ and are ‘categorically outside immigration jurisdiction,’” Star Comes Out said. “Enrolled tribal members are citizens of the United States by statute and citizens of the Oglala Sioux Nation by treaty.”

Details about the circumstances that led to their detention were unclear.

In the memorandum sent to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Star Comes Out said the when tribal nation reached out to the agency it was provided with only the first names of the men. Homeland Security refused to release more information, unless the tribe “entered into an immigration agreement with ICE.”

DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday evening.

Star Comes Out said the tribe has no plans enter an agreement with ICE.

In a post to his Facebook page, Star Comes Out said that the four detained tribal members are experiencing homelessness and living under a bridge in Minneapolis. One of the members was released from detention.

In the press release, he demanded information on the status of the three men in detention, the release of all tribal citizens in ICE custody and a meeting between the tribe and the government.

By CEDAR ATTANASIO

SEATTLE (AP) — Six puppies in rural Washington state will soon be up for adoption after being revived after a suspected drug overdose — and some of them might go home with the fire-station staff who saved them.

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Two people dropped off three of the sickened puppies at Sky Valley Fire, about an hour’s drive northeast of Seattle, on Sunday. Officials believe the animals either breathed or ate fentanyl.

Firefighters sprayed the anti-overdose medication naloxone up their noses, and also treated them with oxygen and even performed CPR. It wasn’t long before their tails started wagging, Battalion Chief Brandon Vargas said Tuesday.

Meanwhile, sheriff’s deputies tracked down the people believed to have dropped off the dogs and found three more puppies that also needed treatment. An animal cruelty or neglect investigation is underway. The pair claimed they were caring for the puppies temporarily, authorities said.

There have been a number of other cases nationally where pets have been saved after being exposed to fentanyl or other opioids.

The puppies have a clean bill of health, but are being quarantined for about one more week before being released for adoption, said David Byrd, manager of Snohomish County Animal Services.

The Everett animal shelter that has been monitoring their health has been overwhelmed with adoption offers, and asked people to not call the shelter with questions about the puppies.

“We definitely have some personnel that are interested in wanting to adopt those,” Vargas said.

Louie Bossi, the chef, partner and namesake of Louie Bossi’s Ristorante in Fort Lauderdale and Boca Raton, was arrested Monday on a misdemeanor domestic battery charge, court records show.

Bossi’s wife called police after an argument with Bossi, 58, in which she said her husband pushed her and threatened her at their Palm Beach County home, according to a probable cause affidavit for his arrest.

As the two were arguing in their bedroom, Bossi allegedly threw a water bottle at his wife and missed, the affidavit said. His wife told deputies that he then came toward her aggressively, grabbed her by her hair on the back of her head and pushed her against a wall, the affidavit said.

Bossi’s wife told deputies she held out her hand to try to prevent her face from hitting the wall, and her husband then grabbed her right wrist and pulled her toward the door, “screaming for her to get out of the house,” the affidavit said.

Louie Bossi: From heroin addict to kitchen kingpin

While on the phone with a 911 dispatcher, Bossi’s wife said he was shouting: “I’m going to kill you,” according to the affidavit.

A Palm Beach County Sheriff’s deputy who responded to the call wrote in the affidavit that Bossi’s wife had bruising and scratches on her right wrist. She declined to be medically treated at the scene, the affidavit said.

Bossi told the deputy he and his wife had an argument over his wife’s medication and that she had “aggressively approached him so he put his hands on her shoulders” to prevent her from getting to him, according to the affidavit.

He was handcuffed and put in the back of the deputy’s patrol car. Jail records show he was released Tuesday afternoon after posting bail on a $1,000 bond.

South Florida restaurateur and chef Louie Bossi was arrested Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, on a misdemeanor domestic battery charge. (Courtesy/Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office)

Bossi and representatives of Big Time Restaurant Group, which operates the restaurants, did not respond to phone and email messages on Tuesday evening.

Louie Bossi’s Ristorante first opened in Fort Lauderdale on Las Olas Boulevard in 2015. The second location in Boca Raton was forced to close in April 2025 after a kitchen fire. It reopened in November with an updated look.

The South Florida Sun Sentinel in 2017 chronicled Bossi’s troubled upbringing in Queens, N.Y. and New Jersey and his rise in the South Florida service industry after overcoming a heroin addiction.

Staff writer Phillip Valys contributed to this report. 

This is a developing story, so check back for updates. Click here to have breaking news alerts sent directly to your inbox.

By SARAH RAZA

Two Minneapolis residents who have been monitoring immigration officers’ actions during the Trump administration’s latest crackdown say they were detained without charge for several hours in distressing conditions, denied phone calls, and pressured to rat out protest organizers and people living in the country illegally.

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The accusations leveled by Brandon Sigüenza and Patty O’Keefe suggest that the Department of Homeland Security is employing similar tactics in Minneapolis and St. Paul as it did during the crackdowns in Los Angeles, Chicago and New Orleans. Federal officers are again using roving patrols, warrantless arrests and aggressive tactics such as spraying chemical irritants, breaking car windows and recording protesters, including Renee Good and her vehicle in the moments before an ICE officer fatally shot her.

According to organizers and an American Civil Liberties Union lawsuit, immigration officers have also been surveilling activists who have been observing their activities in the Twin Cities, violating their First Amendment rights. And Sigüenza, who like his friend O’Keefe is a U.S. citizen, said an immigration officer who questioned him Sunday even offered him money or legal protection if he gave up the names of organizers or neighbors who are in the country illegally.

“At one point, the officer said in vague terms that it looks like I’m in trouble, and he could possibly help me out,” Sigüenza said, noting he refused the offer.

DHS, which oversees Immigration and Customs and Enforcement and the Border Patrol, didn’t immediately respond to a Tuesday request for comment.

Aggressive tactics and an arrest

Sigüenza and O’Keefe, who are among an unknown number of Twin Cities residents observing the immigration officers in action, were detained Sunday while following ICE officers who were driving around and making arrests. The officers stopped in front of O’Keefe’s car, fired pepper spray through her windshield vent and smashed her car’s windows even though the doors were unlocked, the two told The Associated Press.

The car of Patty O’Keefe, a U.S. citizens who was arrested while following federal agents’ vehicles and briefly held at a federal facility in Minneapolis, shows glass on the ground after her front driver’s side window was smashed in, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)

According to O’Keefe, the agents mocked her looks and laughed at her. She said they also brought up the killing of Good, a 37-year-old mother of three who was shot in the head last week by an ICE officer in front of her wife.

O’Keefe said the officer who sprayed their car Sunday threatened them, saying that “obstructing” their work was how Good got killed.

“It was very clear that they were trying to just humiliate me, break me down,” O’Keefe said.

Cash and legal help for information

Sigüenza and O’Keefe said they were arrested and taken in separate unmarked SUVs to the highly restricted federal facility on the edge of Minneapolis that’s serving as the crackdown’s main hub. They were put in adjacent cells reserved for U.S. citizens, one for men and the other for women. Each cell was also being used for other detainees and was no larger than 10 feet by 10 feet (about 9 square meters), with a concrete bench, flat-screen TV, two-way mirror and surveillance camera.

On their way to the cells, they saw other detainees who were screaming and wailing for help, though most were dejectedly staring at the ground, they said. In one instance, they observed a woman who was trying to use a toilet while three male agents watched. The overwhelming majority of detainees were Hispanic men, though some were East African — Minnesota is home to the country’s largest Somali community.

“Just hearing the visceral pain of the people in this center was awful,” O’Keefe said. “And then you juxtapose that with the laughter we heard from the actual agents. … It was very surreal and kind of shocking.”

Sigüenza said one of his cellmates had a cut on his head and the other had an injured toe, but neither was offered medical help. Their requests for water or to go to the bathroom outside their cells were also ignored, he said.

O’Keefe and Sigüenza were able to speak with lawyers, but only Sigüenza allowed to make a phone call — he called his wife.

Sigüenza, who is Hispanic, said DHS investigators took him to another room and offered him money or legal protection for any family members who might be in the country illegally in exchange for giving up the names of protest organizers or neighbors who don’t have legal immigration status. But he said he refused the offer, noting that he doesn’t have any family members without legal status.

Sigüenza and O’Keefe, who have shared their story widely on social media, were let go by evening without charges.

Once they left the facility, they were again hit with chemical agents officers were using on protesters in the area.

“We were not charged with a crime,” said Sigüenza. “We were released and then tear-gassed on our way out.”

Concerns about detention conditions elsewhere

The conditions at immigration detention facilities around the country have been the subject of complaints, including a lawsuit over the one that served as the Chicago-area’s operational hub that resulted in a judge’s oversight visit and an order to improve conditions.

DHS has defended the conditions in its facilities, saying detainees are fed and their medical concerns are addressed. And they’ve trumpeted the success of the immigration crackdowns, saying they’ve led to the arrests of thousands of people who are in the country illegally.

O’Keefe and Sigüenza believe their detention was meant to intimidate them and others critics of the immigration crackdown.

U.S. citizens’ and noncitizens’ rights differ slightly in immigration detention than in criminal detention, according to Lynn Damiano Pearson, an immigration attorney with the National Immigration Law Center. But detainees retain basic rights in both situations, including access to counsel and a phone, food and water, and privacy from the opposite gender when using the restroom.

Associated Press reporter Sophia Tareen contributed to this report.

By JOEY CAPPELLETTI

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Republican-controlled House on Tuesday advanced legislation aimed at fulfilling President Donald Trump’s long-running desire to “make showers great again” by voting to loosen federal efficiency standards for showerheads.

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The bill — dubbed the Saving Homeowners from Overregulation With Exceptional Rinsing, or Shower ACT — passed 226-197, with 11 Democrats crossing the aisle in support.

Republicans have argued the measure would wash away unnecessary regulations and allow more water to flow through showerheads. Democrats warn the relaxed standards could soak consumers with higher utility bills and worsen environmental impacts.

“If they want a nozzle that dribbles on their head, well then go get one of those. If you want something that slices an orange, well then go get one of those. That should be your choice as a consumer,” said GOP Rep. Russell Fry, sponsor of the bill.

The legislation is light on details, and its prospects in the Senate are uncertain as members of that chamber focus attention on government funding and foreign policy. Still, it’s part of a broader effort by House Speaker Mike Johnson to codify Trump’s executive actions in federal law.

In April, Trump signed an executive order calling for an immediate end to water conservation standards that limit the gallons per minute flowing through showerheads and other household appliances, including dishwashers, washing machines, and toilets. The House bill builds on that directive, seeking to reduce what Republicans view as overregulation by permitting stronger water flow in homes than current standards allow.

Environmental groups have criticized the proposal, warning it would increase water consumption and energy use. Democrats echoed those concerns and questioned why Republicans were spending time on the issue.

“Why on God’s green earth, on the first full day that this Congress is back in 2026, are the Republicans using the floor time — in the midst of armed conflict and daily corruption by this administration — to run a bill on rich people showers?” said Rep. Melanie Stansbury, D-N.M., during debate last week.

For over three decades, federal energy law has outlined appliance standards that determine new showerheads shouldn’t pour out more than 2.5 gallons of water per minute (9.5 liters). The Obama administration refined the restrictions and applied those limits to the water that comes out of the entire showerhead, even ones with several nozzles.

During his first term, Trump relaxed that rule to allow each nozzle of a showerhead spray as much as 2.5 gallons. The Biden administration reversed Trump’s action in 2021.

Republicans defended the bill as a necessary corrective. GOP Rep. Michael Rulli of Ohio said Republicans are “worried about the working man.”

“You go on vacation, you go to a motel and you get a shower, it’s the worst shower you ever had. It’s cold. It’s dripping out there. The working man cannot even enjoy his daily life,” Rulli said.

By JOE YERDON

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Anton Lundell scored the go-ahead goal in the third period and A.J. Greer scored twice as the Florida Panthers beat the Buffalo Sabres 4-3 on Monday night.

Greer’s second two-goal game of the season helped the Panthers to their second straight victory. His scored in the first period to give Florida a 2-1 lead and his empty-net goal in the third was the winner.

Sam Reinhart also scored for the Panthers, who posted consecutive wins after opening a six-game trip with two loss. The close out the road trip with games at Carolina (Friday) and Washington (Saturday). Sergei Bobrovsky made 20 saves.

Jacob Bryson, Zach Benson and Alex Tuch scored for the Sabres, who lost for just the second time in the past 15 games. Colten Ellis made 28 saves.

Reinhart opened the scoring with a power-play goal at 2:30 of the first period. Bryson made it 1-all at 10:19. Greer got the lead back for Florida at 15:11.

Benson made it 2-2 at 17:57 of the second period. Josh Doan’s assist on the goal extended his point streak to six games.

Lundell made it 3-2 Florida at 11:07 of the third period. Greer’s empty-net goal at 18:46 made it 4-2. Tuch’s goal a minute later cut it to 4-3.

Panthers forward Brad Marchand missed his third straight game with an undisclosed injury.

Up next

Panthers: At Carolina on Friday.

For Darryl Brown, few football players stand out like Alonza Barnett III, a talent brimming with the tools for success.

Brown witnessed Barnett’s skill firsthand while serving as his coach at Grimsley High School in Greensboro, N.C. The pair would help to lead the Whirlies to the NCHSAA Class 4A state championship in 2020, with Barnett earning MVP honors along the way.

Even five years later, the admiration for his former player can be heard in Brown’s voice.

“He’s a winner and one of the nicest, most polite young men you’ll ever meet,” Brown recently told the Sentinel. “When you put him on the field between those lines and he shuts that helmet up and it’s time to go, he’s gonna do whatever it takes to beat you. He’s the ultimate competitor.”

Barnett is bringing that competitive nature with him after signing with UCF after four seasons at James Madison. The redshirt senior quarterback is the crown jewel of the Knights’ 2026 transfer class, bringing with him the hope of improvement from a frustrating 5-7 season in 2025.

Dave Riggert has had a watchful eye on Barnett. Riggert is the radio voice of James Madison athletics and has seen the overall growth from the 22-year-old.

“The one thing that probably stood out over the course of his four years at JMU was he’s really matured into a pretty impressive young man,” said Riggert.

Riggert recalled that after Barnett redshirted his freshman season, he won the starting job out of fall camp the following season, but after struggling in the opener against Bucknell, then-coach Curt Cignetti replaced him with former USF quarterback Jordan McCloud.

“He did not handle it very well; nothing publicly like he was a bad teammate. Just internally, just with him, probably not practicing as hard as he wanted to, not watching as much film as he wanted to. He admitted it to me, so it’s fair to say he wasn’t mature enough to handle it.

“That made him grow up a ton and made him kind of become the player he’s become.”

Meet the new Knights players from transfer portal

Barnett won back the starting job at the start of the 2024 season, completing 60% of his passes for 2,598 yards with 26 touchdowns and 4 interceptions while earning a spot as an honorable mention on the All-Sun Belt Conference team.

But on the final snap of the regular-season finale against Marshall, Barnett tore his ACL in his right knee, forcing him to miss JMU’s appearance in the Boca Raton Bowl. He missed offseason workouts, spring camp and summer while rehabbing the injury.

In the meantime, coach Bob Chesney and the Dukes signed two veteran quarterbacks: Matthew Sluka (UNLV) and Camden Coleman (Richmond), preparing for the possibility that Barnett wouldn’t be available.

“Coach Chesney told me at one point that they went to Alonza during that whole process and said, ‘Hey, we’re bringing a couple of guys,’ and he welcomed it,” said Riggert. “He welcomed the competition.”

To everyone’s surprise, Barnett returned and won back the starting job for a third time.

“I’ve been around college athletics for about 20 years now and he’s one of the most focused guys that I’ve seen,” Riggert said of Barnett’s comeback. “It speaks volumes to the type of kid that he is, his work ethic, what he demands of himself and just what he thinks he can be.”

Barnett led JMU to an 11-1 regular season that was capped by winning the Sun Belt Conference championship with a 31-14 win over Troy. The win propelled the Dukes into the College Football Playoff, where they lost 51-34 at Oregon in a first-round matchup.

The redshirt junior was named Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year after combining for 3,395 total yards and 38 total touchdowns.

“He could have sat out this year, but he fought to get back and play with his team and led them to a championship and player-of-the-year honors,” said Brown. “He graduated in December and now he’s going to take that grad transfer and play another year. He’s a guy that’s done it the right way.”

It’s a misnomer that the 5-foot-11, 216-pound Barnett is your typical dual-threat quarterback, at least according to Brown and Riggert.

“He uses his legs, but I don’t think that’s his strength,” said Riggert. “He’s more of a pocket-style quarterback who can use his legs. His arm talent is off the charts. The ball comes out of his hand differently than anybody I’ve ever seen. He can make every throw in the book. There is no doubt, and that’s what he wants to do.”

“He’ll do whatever it takes,” added Brown. “He’s good in the pocket. He’s very accurate and understands defenses extremely well. When he’s asked to run the football, he’s a powerful, physical runner. What people may be surprised by is his breakaway speed.”

Barnett has completed 58.8% of his passes throughout his college career for 5,433 yards with 49 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. His interception-to-pass ratio (2.2) was one of the best in the country last season, behind just Hawaii’s Micah Alejado (2.1) and Vanderbilt’s Diego Pavia (2.1).

He’s rushed for 1,031 yards combined over the past two seasons, with 22 total touchdowns, while averaging nearly 4 yards per carry.

“They [JMU] have pushed him into being more of a runner the last couple of years,” said Riggert. “He’s led the Dukes in rushing touchdowns the last two years. When the offense got going, he started running the ball a bit and getting out of the pocket. So it’s not something that, again, he necessarily wants to do, but I think that’s the way the offense works best when he has his legs.”

With Chesney leaving to become the head coach at UCLA, it wasn’t shocking that Barnett would want to leave for his next challenge.

“UCF should be very, very happy to have him,” said Riggert. “He’s going to do great things. It didn’t surprise me that he left and I’m sad personally, but I’m happy and excited to watch him in the future.”

Please find me on X, Bluesky or Instagram @osmattmurschel. Email: mmurschel@orlandosentinel.com. Sign up for the Sentinel’s Knights Weekly newsletter for a roundup of all our UCF coverage.

 

 

By EDITH M. LEDERER

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United States accused Russia on Monday of a “dangerous and inexplicable escalation” of its nearly four-year war in Ukraine at a time when the Trump administration is trying to advance negotiations toward peace.

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U.S. deputy ambassador to the United Nations Tammy Bruce singled out Russia’s launch of a nuclear-capable Oreshnik ballistic missile last week close to Ukraine’s border with Poland, a NATO ally.

She told an emergency meeting of the Security Council that the United States deplores “the staggering number of casualties” in the conflict and condemns Russia’s intensifying attacks on energy and other infrastructure.

Ukraine called for the meeting after last Thursday’s overnight Russian bombardment with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles, including the powerful, new hypersonic Oreshnik missile, which Moscow used for only the second time in what was a clear warning to Kyiv’s NATO allies.

The large-scale attack came days after Ukraine and its allies reported major progress toward agreeing on how to defend the country from further Moscow aggression if a U.S.-led peace deal is struck.

The attack also coincided with a new chill in relations between Moscow and Washington after Russia condemned the U.S. seizure of an oil tanker in the North Atlantic. And it came as U.S. President Donald Trump signaled he is on board with a hard-hitting sanctions package meant to economically cripple Russia.

Moscow has given no public signal it is willing to budge from its maximalist demands on Ukraine. And Russia’s U.N. ambassador on Monday blamed the diplomatic impasse on Ukraine.

Europe’s leaders condemned the attack using the Oreshnik as “escalatory and unacceptable,” and U.S. envoy Bruce was equally tough on Monday.

“At a moment of tremendous potential, due only to President Trump’s unparalleled commitment to peace around the world, both sides should be seeking ways to de-escalate,” she said. “Yet Russia’s action risks expanding and intensifying the war.”

A residential building is seen damaged after a Russian strike in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

Bruce reminded Russia that nearly a year ago it voted in favor of a Security Council resolution calling for an end to the conflict in Ukraine.

“It would be nice if Russia matched their words with deeds,” she said. “In the spirit of that resolution, Russia, Ukraine and Europe must pursue peace seriously and bring this nightmare to an end.”

But Russia’s U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia told the Security Council that until Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy “comes to his senses and agrees to realistic conditions for negotiations, we will continue solving the problem by military means.”

“He was warned long ago, with each passing day, each day which he squanders, the conditions for negotiations will only get worse for him,” Nebenzia said. “Similarly, each vile attack on Russian civilians will elicit a stiff response.”

Ukraine’s U.N. Ambassador Andriy Melnyk countered that Russia is more vulnerable now than at any time since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. Its economy is slowing and oil revenue is down.

“Russia wants to sell to this council and the whole U.N. family the impression that it is invincible, but this is another illusion,” he told the council. “The carefully staged image of strength is nothing but smoke and mirrors, completely detached from reality.”

By AAMER MADHANI

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has arrived at a delicate moment as he weighs whether to order a U.S. military response against the Iranian government as it continues a violent crackdown on protests that have left nearly 600 dead and led to the arrests of thousands across the country.

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The U.S. president has repeatedly threatened Tehran with military action if his administration found the Islamic Republic was using deadly force against antigovernment protesters. It’s a red line that Trump has said he believes Iran is “starting to cross” and has left him and his national security team weighing “very strong options.”

But the U.S. military — which Trump has warned Tehran is “locked and loaded” — appears, at least for the moment, to have been placed on standby mode as Trump ponders next steps, saying that Iranian officials want to have talks with the White House.

“What you’re hearing publicly from the Iranian regime is quite different from the messages the administration is receiving privately, and I think the president has an interest in exploring those messages,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Monday. “However, with that said, the president has shown he’s unafraid to use military options if and when he deems necessary, and nobody knows that better than Iran.”

Hours later, Trump announced on social media that he would slap 25% tariffs on countries doing business with Tehran “effective immediately” — his first action aimed at penalizing Iran for the protest crackdown, and his latest example of using tariffs as a tool to force friends and foes on the global stage to bend to his will.

China, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Brazil and Russia are among economies that do business with Tehran. The White House declined to offer further comment or details about the president’s tariff announcement.

The White House has offered scant details on Iran’s outreach for talks, but Leavitt confirmed that the president’s special envoy Steve Witkoff will be a key player engaging Tehran.

Trump told reporters Sunday evening that a “meeting is being set up” with Iranian officials but cautioned that “we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting.”

“We’re watching the situation very carefully,” Trump said.

Can the protests be sustained?

Demonstrations in Iran continue, but analysts say it remains unclear just how long protesters will remain on the street.

An internet blackout imposed by Tehran makes it hard for protesters to understand just how widespread the demonstrations have become, said Vali Nasr, a State Department adviser during the early part of the Obama administration, and now professor of international affairs and Middle East studies at Johns Hopkins University.

“It makes it very difficult for news from one city or pictures from one city to incense or motivate action in another city,” Nasr said. “The protests are leaderless, they’re organization-less. They are actually genuine eruptions of popular anger. And without leadership and direction and organization, such protests, not just in Iran, everywhere in the world — it’s very difficult for them to sustain themselves.”

Meanwhile, Trump is dealing with a series of other foreign policy emergencies around the globe.

It’s been just over a week since the U.S. military launched a successful raid to arrest Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro and remove him from power. The U.S. continues to mass an unusually large number of troops in the Caribbean Sea.

Trump is also focused on trying to get Israel and Hamas onto the second phase of a peace deal in Gaza and broker an agreement between Russia and Ukraine to end the nearly four-year war in Eastern Europe.

But advocates urging Trump to take strong action against Iran say this moment offers an opportunity to further diminish the theocratic government that’s ruled the country since the Islamic revolution in 1979.

The demonstrations are the biggest Iran has seen in years — protests spurred by the collapse of Iranian currency that have morphed into a larger test of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s repressive rule.

Activists take part in a rally supporting protesters in Iran at Lafayette Park, across from the White House, in Washington, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Iran, through the country’s parliamentary speaker, has warned that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if Washington uses force to protect demonstrators.

Trump allies want to see US back protesters

Some of Trump’s hawkish allies in Washington are calling on the president not to miss the opportunity to act decisively against a vulnerable Iranian government that they argue is reeling after last summer’s 12-day war with Israel and battered by U.S. strikes in June on key Iranian nuclear sites.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said on social media Monday that the moment offers Trump the chance to show that he’s serious about enforcing red lines. Graham alluded to former Democratic President Barack Obama in 2012 setting a red line on the use of chemical weapons by Syria’s Bashar Assad against his own people — only not to follow through with U.S. military action after the then-Syrian leader crossed that line the following year.

“It is not enough to say we stand with the people of Iran,” Graham said. “The only right answer here is that we act decisively to protect protesters in the street — and that we’re not Obama — proving to them we will not tolerate their slaughter without action.”

Former Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich, another close Trump ally, said the “goal of every Western leader should be to destroy the Iranian dictatorship at this moment of its vulnerability.”

“In a few weeks either the dictatorship will be gone or the Iranian people will have been defeated and suppressed and a campaign to find the ringleaders and kill them will have begun,” Gingrich said in an X post. “There is no middle ground.”

Indeed, Iranian authorities have managed to snuff out rounds of mass protests before, including the “Green Movement” following the disputed election in 2009 and the “woman, life, freedom” protests that broke out after 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died in custody of the state’s morality police in 2022.

Trump and his national security team have already begun reviewing options for potential military action and he is expected to continue talks with his team this week.

Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior director of the Iran program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a hawkish Washington think tank, said “there is a fast-diminishing value to official statements by the president promising to hold the regime accountable, but then staying on the sidelines.”

Trump, Taleblu noted, has shown a desire to maintain “maximum flexibility rooted in unpredictability” as he deals with adversaries.

“But flexibility should not bleed into a policy of locking in or bailing out an anti-American regime which is on the ropes at home and has a bounty on the president’s head abroad,” he added.

Two people were shot to death at an office building Monday in Boynton Beach, police said.

The gunman shot himself several blocks away about an hour later, Boynton Police said.

Officers were initially called about a shooting in the 2400 block of High Ridge Road about 4 p.m. They found two people dead inside the building, the police department said in a news release about 7:30 p.m.

Chief Joseph DeGiulio told reporters the shooter and victims knew each another. Their names have not been released as of Monday night.

The building houses multiple businesses, and DeGiulio did not provide information about which business the shooting happened inside.

After the initial call of the shooting, a “concerned resident” called police to report a suspicious car and person near the 500 block of Northwest Seventh Court that matched the description of the shooter’s car.

The concerned citizen reported seeing something “alarming”, DeGiulio said, but he did not have details about what information the citizen gave police. Prior to the citizen’s tip, officers were searching for the shooter in a different area about half a mile away, he said.

Officers tried to pull over the driver, but he or she did not stop. A short pursuit ensued and the driver crashed in the 100 block of Leisureville Boulevard, the news release said.

The suspected shooter was found dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot to the head, DeGiulio said.

The shooting prompted lockdowns at nearby schools and business, all of which have been lifted.

This is a developing story, so check back for updates. Click here to have breaking news alerts sent directly to your inbox.

By MICHAEL R. SISAK and LARRY NEUMEISTER

NEW YORK (AP) — Getting married and allegedly embracing a monogamous lifestyle cannot prove the innocence of a man charged in a conspiracy with his two brothers — both luxury real estate brokers — to sexually assault dozens of women, a federal judge said Monday.

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Judge Valerie E. Caproni rejected Alon Alexander’s request to dismiss one count of the indictment he faces and use his 2019 engagement and subsequent marriage as a defense at a trial scheduled to start next week in Manhattan with jury selection.

The three brothers — Alon, Oren and Tal Alexander — are jailed without bail after pleading not guilty to conspiracy and other charges alleging that they drugged and raped women.

Oren Alexander and Tal Alexander sold high-end properties in New York City, Miami and Los Angeles before the charges were filed alleging that they used their wealth and influence to attack women from 2002 to 2021.

Alon Alexander’s lawyers argued that getting engaged and married signaled his exit from the single life and amounted to a withdrawal from any alleged conspiracy.

Caproni said he “saw an opportunity to reach for the prize” and try to win an acquittal with the argument as she denied his request and said he is also precluded from introducing evidence of his engagement and marriage at the trial.

The judge wrote that proof of Alon Alexander’s engagement and marriage is irrelevant and amounted to hearsay that could not be introduced at trial, including photographs, social media posts and home videos of his engagement announcement, along with statements from his co-defendants and a rabbi.

In a footnote, Caproni wrote that Alon Alexander’s contention that his withdrawal from “the single life” meant he abandoned any conduct that could be part of the sex abuse conspiracy “fails to adequately grapple with the nuance of the Government’s allegations or the contours of a sex trafficking conspiracy more generally.”

She said participation in the criminal conspiracy was not “comparable or akin to participation in ‘the single life.’”

“There are plenty of single men who engage in sexual activity without trafficking, drugging, or raping women and girls,” the judge said. “By the same token, the inverse of the Government’s alleged conspiracy is not, for example, ‘the engaged life’ or ‘the married life.’”

Thus, she said, there is nothing about the “mere transition from ‘single’ to ‘engaged’ that clearly indicates that Defendant withdrew himself from the conspiracy, or that he would cease helping his brothers accomplish the goals of the conspiracy — even if his participation in the scheme no longer involved him having sex (consensual or otherwise) with women that were not his fiancee.”

By SAFIYAH RIDDLE and VALERIE GONZALEZ

As the Trump administration intensifies immigration enforcement nationwide, a wave of high-profile arrests — many unfolding at private homes and businesses and captured on video — has pushed one legal question into the center of the national debate: When can federal immigration agents lawfully enter private property to make an arrest?

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That question has taken on new urgency in cities like Minneapolis, where thousands of federal agents are operating on the streets amid protests, confrontations and a fatal shooting, sharpening scrutiny of the legal authority immigration officers rely on when they arrive at the front door.

At the heart of the debate is a legal distinction largely unfamiliar to the public but central to immigration enforcement.

Most immigration arrests are carried out under administrative warrants, internal documents issued by immigration authorities that authorize the arrest of a specific individual but do not permit officers to forcibly enter private homes or other non-public spaces without consent. Only criminal warrants signed by judges carry that authority. Legal experts say the administration’s aggressive enforcement push, combined with public awareness of those limits, is increasingly turning door-knock encounters into flashpoints, fueling confrontations that are now playing out in cities across the country.

Here is what to know about the limitations on the warrants that authorize most immigration related arrests.

Immigration warrants typically don’t authorize entry onto private property

All law enforcement operations — including those conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection — are governed by the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which protects all people in the country from unreasonable searches and seizures. That means law enforcement is required to have a warrant before searching one’s private property or arresting someone, regardless of immigration status.

But not all warrants are the same. Typically, arrests carried out by Department of Homeland Security agencies are authorized by administrative warrants — sometimes known as immigration warrants — not judicial warrants.

Judicial warrants are issued by a court and signed by a magistrate or a state or federal judge. These warrants allow a relevant law enforcement agency to apprehend a specified individual in any context — regardless of whether the person is on public or on private property. In other words, law enforcement is legally allowed to enter and search a home or business to make the arrest without the consent of the property owner once a judge signs off on the arrest.

By contrast, the administrative warrants used in most immigration operations are sanctioned by an agency, officer or immigration judge, and don’t allow law enforcement to forcibly enter private property to detain someone.

That means people can legally refuse federal immigration agents entry into private property if the agents only have an administrative warrant.

A federal immigration officer deploys pepper spray as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

There are limited exceptions, some of which include if someone is in immediate danger, an officer is actively chasing a suspect or if someone is calling for help inside the residence. But those exceptions don’t apply in routine immigration arrests, legal experts say.

John Sandweg, a former ICE acting director, said officers are trained on what circumstances legally justify forced entry. But as the scope of ICE’s work has expanded, and more Border Patrol agents have begun conducting the work of ICE officers, there is a greater chance that agents will misapply the rules, he said.

“Your risks of all of these types of incidents increase dramatically when you take officers out of their normal operating environment and ask them to do things that they have not been trained to do, because it’s not part of their core missions,” Sandweg said.

Mounting tensions in Minneapolis

The thorny legal distinction between judicial and administrative warrants came to the fore on Sunday when immigration law enforcement raided a private home to make an arrest in Minneapolis, after clashing with protesters who confronted the heavily armed agents. Documents reviewed by The Associated Press revealed that the agents only had an administrative warrant — meaning there was no judge that authorized the raid on private property.

When asked, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin didn’t provide a legal justification for the forced entry and arrest of the man, who is a Liberian national with a deportation order from 2023. She said his arrest was part of the administration’s efforts to arrest “the worst of the worst” and added that he had that a criminal history including “robbery, drug possession with the intent to sell, possession of a deadly weapon, malicious destruction and theft.”

McLaughlin didn’t specify whether he was convicted of any of those crimes, or whether his arrest was related to any criminal activity.

Vice president of policy at the National Immigration Law Center, Heidi Altman, said she couldn’t comment on that specific raid, but said that generally an officer entering a home without consent or permission could result in serious consequences.

“That is not just an illegal arrest. It’s numerous illegal actions by the officer themselves that could open up liability, not just for being sued, but potential criminal actions under state law as well,” she explained.

But in the current political climate, Altman said, it isn’t clear if there are any realistic avenues for accountability since the federal government would be responsible for investigating such a breech.

“There are layers of federal laws and regulations and policies prohibiting this kind of behavior. But then the second layer is: Is the federal government going to impose consequences?” she said.

On top of that, immigrants have less recourse after an illegal arrest or search, since the illegally obtained evidence can still be used in immigration court. It’s called the exclusionary rule, Altman explained, and the consequences that the officer may face would not undo the immediate consequences immigrants could face if they are quickly deported.

A family member reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

“As those legal challenges come and people are facing very, very quick detentions and deportations on the basis of these illegal arrests, there’s very little recourse in actual immigration court proceedings that allows people to have a judge disregard evidence or the actual arrest, even if it was done in this very violent, illegal manner,” Altman said.

‘Know-your-rights’ campaigns

ICE has long relied on “knock and talks” to make apprehensions, informally requesting residents to leave a home without giving any indication they plan to make an immigration arrest. As outlined in a 2020 lawsuit in which a federal judge found the practice illegal, officers tell their targets that they need them to step outside to answer a few questions. In one case, they told a woman that they were probation officers looking for her brother.

In response, activists, lawyers and local governments have launched “know-your-rights” campaigns around the country, attempting to educate people on the legal nuances of the extremely convoluted legal framework that is supposed to govern immigration law enforcement.

Many groups have published fact sheets and infographics on social media, while others facilitate meetings that go over constitutional protections that immigrants have — regardless of legal status — in interactions with federal agents.

Often groups will instruct immigrants to request to see a warrant before opening the door if an immigration officer knocks. The trainings also typically emphasize that an immigrant can refuse to open the door if law enforcement only has an administrative warrant.

The Miami Hurricanes boosted their defensive line via the transfer portal Monday evening.

Ohio State defensive tackle Jarquez Carter committed to Miami, announcing his decision on social media. He is the fourth transfer to commit to UM this offseason and the first defensive lineman. Carter was also considering Texas A&M.

Carter was a four-star prospect in the 2025 class out of Newberry High in north Florida.

The defensive lineman played in seven games (51 total snaps) in 2025.

The Hurricanes recruited Carter out of high school before he ultimately settled on the Buckeyes. He was high-school teammates with current UM defensive lineman Mykah Newton. UM likes Carter’s quickness, his strength at the point of attack and his ability to play violently, a Miami source said.

The 6-foot-2, 290-pound defensive tackle will help fill the void left by departing defensive tackles David Blay Jr., who is out of eligibility after the end of the season, and Donta Simpson, who transferred to Missouri.