Overview
- U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon granted a preliminary injunction limiting federal agents’ use of chemical agents and less‑lethal munitions unless someone poses an imminent threat of physical harm.
- The ruling bars firing chemical or projectile munitions at a person’s head, neck or torso absent a lawful basis for deadly force and forbids using these tools to move crowds or punish passive resistance such as trespassing or refusing to disperse.
- Simon provisionally certified a class covering nonviolent protesters and freelance journalists, extending the injunction’s protections while the ACLU of Oregon lawsuit proceeds.
- In a written opinion citing videos, the judge said officers sprayed OC directly into the faces of peaceful protesters and called the conduct objectively chilling; he also directed the parties to develop clearer officer identification standards.
- In a separate case, Judge Amy M. Baggio restricted deployments that could expose a nearby affordable housing complex to chemical agents except in an imminent threat to life, and DHS has defended its tactics as necessary as the DOJ has indicated it will appeal, according to reporting.