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Following the recent arrest of New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, the latest Democrat apprehended while observing and protesting U.S. immigration authorities, the current administration has revived a familiar justification for his detainment. Lander’s arrest underscores the ongoing tensions surrounding immigration enforcement actions and the scrutiny faced by officials who challenge them.
The mayoral candidate allegedly “assaulted” law enforcement, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) asserted, warning that “if you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will face consequences.”
These accusations, recently directed towards a member of Congress and a prominent union leader, have triggered alarm, particularly given that videos of the events contradict the assault claims, instead showcasing aggressive behavior and forceful handling of the officials by officers.
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In several instances, DHS’s declarations of assault were not substantiated by criminal charges. Civil rights advocates and policing experts argue that the government’s claims against well-known figures from the opposing party, coupled with the repetition of these claims, signal a concerning trend towards authoritarianism. They contend that the U.S. government is deliberately distorting events to intimidate influential officials and ordinary citizens challenging administration policies.
Alec Karakatsanis, founder of Civil Rights Corps, a legal advocacy group, stated: “By relentlessly telling the population that ‘two plus two equals five’, it helps determine who is willing to go along with ‘two plus two equals five’ and deny basic truths.”
“It’s also about a longer-term and more profound assault on the very notion of truth – to get people so confused that they don’t know what is what,” said Karakatsanis, author of Copaganda, a book about false narratives promoted by police.
“This is the classic propaganda tactic of George Orwell’s 1984,” he added.
Lander was detained by federal agents inside an immigration court building after questioning officers about a judicial warrant for detaining an immigrant he was accompanying. He was released after four hours, with no charges filed.
Video footage shows officers, some masked, pinning Lander, who was holding onto the arm of the targeted immigrant, against a wall, handcuffing him, and escorting him away.
DHS Assistant Secretary, Tricia McLaughlin, asserted shortly after the incident that Lander had assaulted officers.
Similar accusations were made against U.S. Congresswoman LaMonica McIver, who DHS claims assaulted and impeded law enforcement when she and two other representatives inspected an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center on May 9. McIver sought to ensure the facility’s cleanliness, safety, and detainees’ access to legal counsel.
Videos of the encounter show a chaotic scene with McIver and others surrounded by officers. McIver was later indicted for assault, a charge she denies.
In Los Angeles, David Huerta, president of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) of California, was arrested on June 6 while documenting an immigration raid at a garment factory. Footage shows officers pushing him to the ground and handcuffing him.
Huerta was charged with conspiracy to impede an officer but not assault. DHS maintains that “Huerta assaulted Ice law enforcement.” He was hospitalized following his arrest.
Last week, California Senator Alex Padilla was handcuffed and forcibly removed from a DHS press conference for asking a question, with the FBI accusing him of “resisting” law enforcement. No charges were filed.
McLaughlin stated that Democratic politicians are “contributing to the surge in assaults of our Ice officers through their repeated vilification and demonization of Ice,” adding, “This violence against ICE must end.”
DHS has claimed a significant increase in assaults on its officers, citing a “413% increase in assaults against them” since May.
DHS spokespeople have declined to specify the source, number, or time periods compared. An April press release mentioned a “300% surge in assaults.”
McLaughlin claimed a “500% increase in assaults” but did not provide details.
Allegations of rising authoritarianism in Immigration Enforcement
‘Everyone is at risk’
Experts suggest DHS’s narratives echo past law enforcement efforts to demonize critics, albeit with increased brazenness under the current administration.
Andrea J. Ritchie, co-founder of Interrupting Criminalization, stated that law enforcement often prosecutes those abused and injured by officers. Civil rights lawyers often encounter charges of resisting arrest, assault on an officer, and obstruction of justice. “The harder you get beaten, the more likely you’ll get those charges.”
Ritchie added that the frequency of accusations against high-profile figures is a new development.
Lauren Regan, a civil rights lawyer, views arresting elected officials as part of an “authoritarian playbook” intended to instill fear.
“You keep it chaotic and random so no one thinks they’re safe,” said Regan. “When elected officials with privilege, power, education and training get thrown to the ground and cuffed or jailed, then what is going to happen to us? Everyone is at risk.”
Padilla echoed this sentiment: “If they can do this to a United States senator who has the audacity to ask a question, just imagine what they’re doing to so many people across the country.”
Since protests against raids began in LA, hundreds have been arrested. Federal prosecutors initially charged demonstrators with assaulting officers, then moved to dismiss cases.
In one instance, video showed an agent shoving a protester before arrests and officers taking protesters to the ground. Prosecutors later dismissed charges after one protester reported injury and denied attacking agents.
DHS has also criticized others amid enforcement actions in LA. The Los Angeles Times published video of border patrol agents detaining a U.S. citizen outside his repair shop. Despite the man’s claims of citizenship, an agent pushed him into a gate. DHS labeled the story “fake news,” citing a screenshot and claiming the man “ASSAULTED US Customs and Border Protection Agents.”
DHS did not clarify what constituted assault, instead reiterating previous statements.
Alex Vitale, of Brooklyn College, noted that “assault” can be a “nebulous category” including “unwanted physical conduct.”
Cases can persist, regardless of evidence strength: “Police understand that the arrest and the process is the penalty even if there’s no conviction in the end.”
Misinformation and Undermining Public Trust
‘They are trying to manufacture reality’
Mike German, a former FBI agent, cautioned that repeated misinformation about violence against officers risks backfiring: “Officers do at times get assaulted, but if agencies continue to make patently false claims and suggest that any physical contact is an assault, you’re going to undermine legitimate cases.”
He also raised concerns about excessive force: “Three or four agents tackling a US senator clearly isn’t necessary. That kind of force compels resistance…and then if officers say that’s assault, that undermines public trust.”
Ritchie noted that LaMonica McIver is the only politician still prosecuted for assault: “Black women get punished for speaking up and it’s framed as assault.”
She emphasized the importance of rejecting law enforcement narratives: “They are trying to manufacture reality. It is upon us to say the government is lying to us. This is a message they are trying to send and we’re not accepting it and certainly not normalizing it.”