Concerns Rise Over Use of Force in Immigration Protests Across the U.S.
A recent study sheds light on the deployment of crowd control measures by Homeland Security officers and local police during immigration enforcement operations and protests throughout the United States. The research is backed by human rights and medical groups, utilizing bystander videos and news reports to build a comprehensive database on the use of pepper spray, rubber bullets, and other forceful tactics by law enforcement.
Payal Shah, director of research, legal, and advocacy at Physicians for Human Rights and co-author of the report, explained the motivation behind the study. “What we were hearing time and again from courts and from the litigators that were seeking to end the use of crowd control weapons improperly by law enforcement officials was that there needed to be more information, more evidence around the patterns of use of these weapons,” she stated.
The report catalogs over 400 incidents of force used from June 2025 to May of this year, including a notable case where an ICE agent used pepper spray at close range on an observer in South Tucson. The majority of those affected were demonstrators and journalists.
Focusing on procedural misuse, the report highlights instances where force was used improperly against vulnerable populations, such as children, journalists, or in ways contrary to safety recommendations. Shah elaborated, “Including fire of projectiles not meant to be used in this manner, close range fire, shots targeted at the head or groin, or used in enclosed places or without exit.” She emphasized the worrying trend of potential violations of human and constitutional rights linked to law enforcement’s response to immigration protests.
With over 190 documented injuries ranging from cuts and burns to traumatic brain injuries, the study raises significant alarm. Sasha Schell from the Human Rights Center at the University of California, Berkeley, which co-released the report, noted the complexity of accountability due to the involvement of multiple agencies, each with distinct protocols and equipment. “We had just a soup of sub-agencies at DHS, each with their own use-of-force manual, each with their own weapons, from different parts of the country, and it just makes accountability and understanding who’s doing what, why, how, that much more difficult,” Schell remarked.
The report urges Congressional oversight and accountability measures, such as mandating body-worn cameras and prohibiting masks for officers. It also calls for a ban on federal officers using certain weapons, like metallic projectiles. Despite a pilot program initiated under the Biden administration requiring some Border Patrol agents to wear body cameras, which led to the release of footage of significant force incidents, this effort has stalled under the Trump administration.
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