MINNEAPOLIS — Homeland Security agents arrested Treasure Thoreson at her home in Minneapolis in June 2026. The government charged Thoreson and 14 others with engaging in a conspiracy to impede federal agents.

The Justice Department is using federal conspiracy charges to prosecute ICE protesters. Since President Trump took office in 2025, the Justice Department has charged more than three dozen people in at least 10 cases involving protests against federal immigration enforcement.

Treasure Thoreson is a special education teacher in Minneapolis. The indictment alleges the conspiracy culminated in blockades outside the Whipple Federal Building, which served as ICE's headquarters during an immigration enforcement surge in Minnesota. The government cited meetings and conversations on the encrypted messaging app Signal as evidence in the Thoreson case.

The charge of conspiracy to impede or injure an officer can carry a sentence of up to six years in federal prison. The statute for conspiracy to impede or injure an officer dates back to the Civil War. For a conspiracy to occur under the statute involving impeding or injuring an officer, there must be an agreement among people to commit a crime that prevents the officer from doing their duties through force, intimidation, or threat.

The government has indicted nearly 50 people on conspiracy charges in Michigan, Texas, and Minnesota using different legal statutes. A case in Texas involved a protester shooting a local police officer, who survived. "People should not mistake violence against law enforcement or impeding officers performing their duties with peaceful protest," the Justice Department said in a statement.

Before 2025, most recent cases using the conspiracy-to-impede statute stemmed from the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and involved far-right groups such as the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers. Cases related to the Jan. 6 insurrection were either dismissed when Trump took office or when Trump pardoned those who were convicted.

Protesters gathered outside a building in Spokane, Wash. Last summer where federal immigration officers were holding two immigrants. Some protesters in Spokane linked arms and tried to block a van from moving detainees to the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma. The detention center is operated by the GEO Group on behalf of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The Northwest Detention Center is a privately-run detention center located in the Tideflats of the City of Tacoma, Washington, USA.

Local police used pepper balls to disperse the crowd in Spokane and arrested about 30 people. The DOJ ordered U.S. attorneys around the country to prioritize prosecuting protesters who destroyed property or assaulted law enforcement, according to an internal email. Then-Attorney General Pam Bondi issued a memo directing U.S. attorneys in select districts to charge protesters who interfered with law enforcement with the highest provable offense available under the law.

Richard Barker was the acting U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Washington. Richard Barker resigned before signing an indictment for conspiracy charges against Spokane protesters. Nine people were charged with conspiracy about a month after the Spokane protest. Barker's successor signed the indictment for the Spokane conspiracy charges.

Jac Archer is the policy director at Spokane Community Against Racism. Six defendants in the Spokane case pleaded guilty, but three chose to go to trial. Jac Archer and Bajun Mavalwalla II were among the three defendants who went to trial in the Spokane case. During the trial in May, prosecutors argued that the defendants entered into a conspiracy the day of the protest to block the vehicle transporting detainees.

Bajun Mavalwalla II is a combat veteran who served in Afghanistan. The government alleged that federal agents feared for their safety during the Spokane protest and that protesters damaged property, including slashing tires. Archer and Mavalwalla were not accused of damaging property or slashing tires in the indictment. Aaron Terr is the director of public advocacy at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression.

The shift in charging strategy represents a significant expansion of federal conspiracy statutes beyond their previous application to the Jan. 6 insurrection cases. PureSource News previously reported that the Justice Department Targets 300 Foreign-Born for Denaturalization, indicating a broader enforcement posture.

PureSource News previously reported that the Justice Department Requests Eviction And Restrictions For Genco, further illustrating the department's active legal initiatives. PureSource News previously reported that Judge Brinkema Allows Fund Lawsuit Against DOJ to Proceed, showing ongoing judicial scrutiny of departmental actions.

Why It Matters

The Justice Department's use of a Civil War-era statute to prosecute immigration protesters marks a shift from its prior application against Jan. 6 insurrectionists, who saw their cases dismissed or pardoned after 2025. With convictions carrying up to six years in prison, the strategy expands federal conspiracy charges beyond violent acts to include coordinated blockades and encrypted communications. This approach subjects demonstrators in multiple states to severe penalties under directives to pursue the highest provable offenses for interfering with law enforcement.