The 37-year-old mother of three was fatally shot by an ICE agent in Minneapolis earlier this month amid a surge in federal immigration enforcement activities. The protesters allege that one of the church's pastors — David Easterwood — also leads the local ICE field office overseeing the operations that have involved violent tactics and illegal arrests. “When you think about the federal government unleashing barbaric ICE agents upon our community and all the harm that they have caused, to have someone serving as a pastor who oversees these ICE agents, is almost unfathomable to me,” said Armstrong, who added she is an ordained reverend. In a Jan. 5 court filing, Easterwood defended ICE's tactics in Minnesota such as swapping license plates and spraying protesters with chemical irritants. He wrote that federal agents were experiencing increased threats and aggression and crowd control devices like flash-bang grenades were important to protect against violent attacks.

Source: ABC News January 19, 2026 04:57 UTC