Federal judge restricts the use of tear gas at anti-ICE protests in Portland

A federal judge has restricted the use of tear gas at anti-ICE protests in Portland.

U.S. District Judge Michael Simon, a federal judge in Oregon, has imposed new limits on crowd control techniques such as tear gas to control unruly protesters outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) building in the city. He issued the preliminary injunction in response to an American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon lawsuit that complained of retaliation against the lawful exercise of First Amendment rights.

“The order followed a three-day hearing in which plaintiffs — including a demonstrator known for wearing a chicken costume, a married couple in their 80s, and two freelance journalists — testified that federal officers used chemical spray and projectile munitions against them,” Fox News reported.

#Breaking: Oregon US District Court Judge Michael Simon has issued a temporary protection order prohibiting federal officers from using tear gas, pepper balls, and other crowd control munitions at the Portland ICE facility.

This comes as Antifa-affiliated protesters increase… pic.twitter.com/HmRPZzkQay

— Katie Daviscourt 📸 (@KatieDaviscourt) February 3, 2026

Simon was sympathetic to their cause and cited videos of the “peaceful and nonviolent” protesters being sprayed with OC spray and other chemical irritants in his written decision.

“Plaintiffs provided numerous videos, which were received in evidence and unambiguously show DHS officers spraying OC Spray directly into the faces of peaceful and nonviolent protesters engaged in, at most, passive resistance and discharging tear gas and firing pepper-ball munitions into crowds of peaceful and nonviolent protestors,” the judge wrote. “Defendants’ conduct — physically harming protestors and journalists without prior dispersal warnings — is objectively chilling.”

The conduct of the agents was previously defended by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which said they “followed their training and used the minimum amount of force necessary to protect themselves, the public, and federal property.”

“In his ruling, Simon barred agents from using chemical or projectile munitions such as pepper balls and tear gas unless someone poses an imminent threat of physical harm. He also instructed agents not to fire munitions at the head, neck, or torso ‘unless the officer is legally justified in using deadly force against that person,'” Fox noted.

Additionally, agents are not to spray chemical irritants indiscriminately or in a way that may affect peaceful protesters or bystanders.

X users weighed in:

Once upon a time courts could be trusted to rule on the basis of law, now judges find a reason to rule in favor of a political cause.
Oregon judge limits federal agents’ tear gas use at Portland ICE protestshttps://t.co/yw76uWqvNk

— MadBeeMan (@AllenMills17983) March 10, 2026

This kind of stuff isn’t being used because people are being peaceful.

Oregon judge limits federal agents’ tear gas use at Portland ICE protests #Oregon #Deportation #Constitution https://t.co/q8kvD10k3n

— Charles Palmer (@Charles02339637) March 10, 2026

I thought the Supreme Court straightened this out? Have it your way. Let things escalate to the point where it’s justified to use lethal force. Tear gas will seem reasonable at that point.🇺🇸 https://t.co/Lw0GAK1IR3

— 🇺🇸 Stan Smith 🇺🇸 (@StanSmith284183) March 10, 2026

It would be interesting to see if this judge still feels the same way if it was his own front porch being surrounded every single night.

— Oscar | Æ (@oscar_gnzz) March 10, 2026

Wouldn’t it be cool if all those protesters either got jobs, created things, or offered value and benefited society?

— Jacob (@JacobXingBlog) March 10, 2026

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