A federal judge, appointed by President Donald Trump, has called out the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for its handling of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees in Minnesota. On February 12, U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel ruled that the government violated the constitutional rights of people arrested in the immigration crackdown.
Activist groups and detainees had filed a lawsuit against the DHS, citing that authorities at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building near Minneapolis barred arrested immigrants from contacting their lawyers and seeking adequate legal counsel.
A federal judge in Minnesota has ruled that ICE detainees were likely denied their constitutional rights during “Operation Metro Surge,” citing blocked access to attorneys at the Whipple Building.
The court found a clear likelihood of success on a Fifth Amendment claim,…
— WarMonitor (@TheWarMonitor) February 13, 2026
The building serves as a processing and holding facility for ICE amid Operation Metro Surge, which has led to thousands of arrests in the twin cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.
The DHS, ICE and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem were named as the defendants in the lawsuit. The defense argued that providing access to legal counsel would lead to overcrowding and chaos, threatening the center’s safety.
However, in her 41-page ruling, Brasel noted that a facility’s shortcomings do not justify blocking legal counsel’s access to non-citizens.
Brasel wrote, “Defendants may not properly choose a facility that is unfit for a particular purpose and then use the inadequacies of the facility as a justification to deprive detainees of meaningful, confidential access to legal counsel to the extent demanded by the Constitution.”
Interestingly, Trump appointed Brasel to the bench during his first term as president in 2018. The defense lawyers claimed that detainees at the Whipple Federal Building were given access to phones to call their lawyers.
However, evidence proved otherwise and revealed that non-citizens were mostly allowed only one phone call, that too under the surveillance of ICE officials.
The plaintiffs also stated that ICE frequently moves detainees from one center to another, which makes it even more difficult for lawyers to track or reach them.
The judge has now passed a temporary restraining order, asking ICE to ensure that all detainees at Whipple are allowed to make a phone call to a lawyer within an hour of their arrest.
Brasel has also ordered that ICE provide the detained immigrants with a list of telephone numbers of free legal service providers. Additionally, detainees should be allowed unlimited and unmonitored calls to their attorney.
Legal guides are also allowed to visit their clients at the center throughout the week, according to the ruling. Furthermore, officials cannot transfer a detainee out of the state for the first 72 hours of detention.
🚨BREAKING: The Trump administraiton has committed a mass violation of ICE detainees’ constitutional rights in MN, effectively blocking their acess to attorneys in the Whipple building, a judge ruled tonight.
The judge: Trump appointeee Nancy Brasel pic.twitter.com/aAKp1bBpnC
— G (@stockguy61) February 13, 2026
The order remains valid until February 26, unless the court decides to extend it. Brasel ruled, “Legal visitation shall be permitted seven days per week, for a minimum of eight hours per day on business days (Monday through Friday), and a minimum of four hours per day on weekends and holidays.”
The judge further criticized the Trump administration’s handling of the crackdown by writing, “The Constitution does not permit the government to arrest thousands of individuals and then disregard their constitutional rights because it would be too challenging to honor those rights.”
Human rights activists have welcomed the judgment and believe the order will bring much-needed respite to the detained individuals. Meanwhile, the government has announced the conclusion of Operation Metro Surge after widespread protests and the deaths of two Minneapolis citizens.
