Legal battles over immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota intensify

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — As confrontations with federal officers over their massive immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota showed no signs of stopping Wednesday, legal battles over the surge and the local response were also intensifying.

Federal prosecutors served grand jury subpoenas Tuesday to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's office and five other officials in the state as part of an investigation into whether they obstructed or impeded law enforcement during a sweeping immigration operation in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, a person familiar with the matter said.

The subpoenas, which seek records, were also sent to the offices of Attorney General Keith Ellison, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her and officials in Ramsey and Hennepin counties, the person said.

The person was not authorized to publicly discuss an ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The subpoenas came a day after the government urged a judge to reject efforts to stop the immigration enforcement surge that has roiled Minneapolis and St. Paul for weeks.

The Justice Department called the state’s lawsuit, filed soon after the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an immigration officer, “legally frivolous.” Ellison has said the government is violating free speech and other constitutional rights.

Vice President JD Vance, meanwhile, is expected to travel to Minneapolis on Thursday for a roundtable with local leaders and community members, according to sources familiar with his plans who spoke on condition on anonymity because the trip had not yet been officially announced.

The subpoenas are related to an investigation into whether Minnesota officials obstructed federal immigration enforcement through public statements they made, two people familiar with the matter said Friday. They said then that it was focused on the potential violation of a conspiracy statute.

In a subpoena released by Frey’s office, the long list of documents required include “any records tending to show a refusal to come to the aid of immigration officials.”

Frey said: “We shouldn’t have to live in a country where people fear that federal law enforcement will be used to play politics or crack down on local voices they disagree with."

The governor's office referred reporters to a statement earlier Tuesday in which Walz said the Trump administration was not seeking justice, only creating distractions.

Greg Bovino of U.S. Border Patrol, who has commanded the Trump administration's big-city immigration crackdown, said more than 10,000 people in the U.S. illegally have been arrested in Minnesota in the past year, including 3,000 “of some of the most dangerous offenders" in the last six weeks during Operation Metro Surge.

Julia Decker, policy director at the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, expressed frustration that advocates have no way of knowing whether the government’s arrest numbers and descriptions of the people in custody are accurate.

Good, 37, was killed on Jan. 7 as she was moving her vehicle, which had been blocking a Minneapolis street where ICE officers were operating. Trump administration officials say the officer, Jonathan Ross, shot her in self-defense, although videos of the encounter show the Honda Pilot slowly turning away from him.

Since then, the public has repeatedly confronted officers, blowing whistles and yelling insults at ICE and Border Patrol. They, in turn, have used tear gas and chemical irritants against protesters. Bystanders have recorded video of officers using a battering ram to get into a house as well as smashing vehicle windows and dragging people out of cars.

Bovino defended his "troops” and said their actions are "legal, ethical and moral.”

A Minnesota church targeted by an anti-ICE protest Sunday decried it as unlawful, while one of the protest leaders called for the resignation of a church leader who works at a local ICE office. About three dozen people entered Cities Church in St. Paul, some walking right up to the pulpit.

“Invading a church service to disrupt the worship of Jesus — or any other act of worship — is protected by neither the Christian Scriptures nor the laws of this nation,” Cities Church in St. Paul said Tuesday in a statement shared by its pastor, Jonathan Parnell.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem described the protesters as “agitators” in a post on X and said, “arrests coming.”

Richer reported from Washington. Associated Press reporters Ed White in Detroit; Sarah Raza, Jack Brook and Giovanna Dell'Orto in Minneapolis; Rebecca Boone in Boise, Idaho, and Ali Swenson in Washington contributed.

People arrive for an MLK rally on, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026 in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)

ICE agents make use of the facilities at a gas station, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

U.S. Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino speaks during a news conference Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and his wife, Gwen Walz, attend a vigil honoring Renee Good on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn., outside the Minnesota State Capitol. (Kerem Yücel/Minnesota Public Radio via AP)

A federal immigration officer looks through a window of a home Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, in Maplewood, Minn. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Steve Kerr and the Golden State Warriors are still coming to terms with how dramatically their season changes after Jimmy Butler's season-ending right knee injury and how they must depend on their depth going forward without the do-everything guard.

An MRI exam late Monday after the injury revealed Butler tore the ACL in his right knee during the third quarter of a 135-112 victory earlier in the night against his former Miami team and will need surgery. He landed awkwardly moments after catching a pass in the paint following a collision with the Heat’s Davion Mitchell.

The 36-year-old Butler’s surgery date hadn't been set.

“Well, most of all just disappointed for Jimmy. He's having a great year. I felt like the last couple weeks he was really at the top of his game,” Kerr said before a home loss to Toronto on Tuesday. “So for him and for us obviously, for him individually, in the middle of a really great season with a lot of possibilities, a lot of excitement with the team the way was playing, I just feel terrible for him that he's going to miss the rest of the year. It's part of the game, I know, injuries are a part of it, but it hurts for sure.”

Butler’s knee buckled upon his landing and he screamed, grimaced and grabbed at his knee while down for a couple of minutes. He needed teammates Gary Payton II and Buddy Hield to escort him off the court to the locker room after the fall on the Warriors’ offensive end. When he finally got up with assistance, he was unable to put any pressure on his knee.

In just under 21 minutes, Butler had 17 points on 6-for-11 shooting, four assists and three rebounds. He was Golden State’s second-leading scorer this season behind Stephen Curry, having averaged 20 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.9 assists.

Golden State had won four straight games and 12 of 16 before falling 145-127 to the Raptors in the final game of its eight-game homestand. But the Warriors are only eighth in the Western Conference, leaving them work to do just to make the playoffs in Butler's absence.

Kerr plans to experiment with rotations and said Jonathan Kuminga “could be” part of the mix despite not playing in more than a month — 16 straight games since Dec. 18 and 19 of 20 overall. He believes Kuminga wants to play and be part of the team despite his recent request for a trade and all of the speculation about him being dealt before the deadline Feb. 5.

Kuminga checked into the game to start the second quarter to a warm ovation, then received more cheers when he went to the free throw line on the way to scoring 20 points in 21 minutes.

“He's been over four years so we’re comfortable with what he can do and how he might fit in,” Kerr said before the game.

General manager Mike Dunleavy said the timing of the injury allows the organization to consider options ahead of the deadline, sharing that “nothing's imminent” as far as trading Kuminga.

Dunleavy called it a "tough 24 hours here” seeing Butler go down — but the hope is he could return at some point around this time next season.

“He has meant so much to this organization since he got here. It's hard to believe he hasn't even been here a year, he's fit in so well,” Dunleavy said. "You hate it for him. The beat goes on, you've got to keep going and I think our team’s playing really good. We’ve been playing some good basketball. That’s the bright spot here. I don’t have a positive twist on the news, it’s not good. ACL injuries are not things that you can be positive about, but this will all come out well in the end and we’ll move forward.”

Kerr expects Al Horford and De'Anthony Melton will continue to play key roles.

“I think we have enough to compete. I think Al and Melt have given us a different dynamic, I think a lot of our young players — Quinten (Post), Will Richard — those guys are ready to contribute, they have contributed,” Kerr said. “We've got depth so we can keep this thing going. Obviously we will miss Jimmy. He's one of the best players in the league, you can't minimize that, trivialize it, but you play with who you have and I like who we have.”

Buddy Hield has been checking on his good friend Butler.

“Jimmy's being Jimmy, he's happy. Of course, injury, he wants to play, everybody wants him to play,” Hield said. “I text him, call him, he's in high spirits. For a person to be in that high spirits after an injury like that it just shows his character.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA

Golden State Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy speaks to reporters before an NBA basketball game against the Toronto Raptors, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

Golden State Warriors' Jimmy Butler III dunks in the first half of an NBA basketball game against Miami Heat in San Francisco on Monday, Jan. 19, 2026. (Scott Strazzante/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler III, middle, is helped up by teammates during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat in San Francisco, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler III, middle, is helped off the floor by teammates during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat in San Francisco, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler III, second from left, is helped off the floor by teammates during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat in San Francisco, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Golden State Warriors' Jimmy Butler III reacts to a basket and a foul in the first half of an NBA basketball game against Miami Heat in San Francisco on Monday, Jan. 19, 2026. (Scott Strazzante/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, left, checks on forward Jimmy Butler III during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat in San Francisco, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)