The American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon filed a petition asking that a court hold federal agents in contempt of court for violating a temporary restraining order barring them from arresting members of the press during protests.
The civil liberties group filed the contempt request against the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Marshals Service on Tuesday, arguing that federal law enforcement officers violated the restraining order by removing journalists and legal observers from protest sites after a judge forbade officers from doing so in a ruling last week.
“This administration claims to be defending the federal courthouse, but won’t obey the orders coming out of it. What purpose are these agents actually serving then?” said Kelly Simon, interim legal director of the ACLU of Oregon.
In last week’s ruling, the court issued a restraining order on federal officers, prohibiting them from seizing equipment, such as press passes or cameras, from journalists or legal observers who have clearly identified themselves. The restraining order was filed on Thursday, but the ACLU alleged that the order has been violated several times over the past few days.
“I was clearly marked as a member of the press and was standing by myself,” said Kathryn Elsesser, a freelance photographer who was working during the protests on Saturday. “Suddenly, without warning or reason, I felt a hard, searing, burning pain in the back of my arm. A federal agent had shot me from across the street with some type of bullet. I met multiple other photojournalists that night who were similarly attacked despite being clearly labeled as press.”
The ACLU also asked the court to mandate that acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf and acting Under Secretary Ken Cuccinelli “personally appear” in court to defend themselves against the contempt charges. The group requested that each individual officer who was involved in the detainment or removal of journalists or legal observers be “prohibited from engaging in armed operations in Portland.”
