10 people file excessive force claims against federal agents following Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota

Sarah Nelson, The Minnesota Star Tribune on Mar 26, 2026

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MINNEAPOLIS — Wynnie Savageford said she was observing federal agents on Nicollet Avenue on the frigid morning of Jan. 24 when three of them tackled her to the ground after she asked if they had a warrant. A stranger told the agents to leave her alone and recorded the interaction with his phone as she was escorted to the back of a car, her hand numb from handcuffs.

Sitting in the car across the street, Savageford said she watched agents moments later fatally shoot that man, identified as Alex Pretti.

“That day has changed me forever,” she said. “The trauma will haunt me for the rest of my life.”

Savageford and nine other people have filed federal tort claims against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and several other agencies, alleging agents used excessive force and violated their constitutional right to protest during Operation Metro Surge, Trump’s immigration crackdown in Minnesota.

Under the Federal Tort Claims Act, individuals who are injured or whose property is damaged by the wrongful or negligent acts of federal employees performing official duties may file a claim with the government for reimbursement for that injury or damage.

The claimants are represented by John Burris, Rodney King’s lead attorney in his civil case that won a $3.8 million verdict after he was videotaped being beaten by four Los Angeles police officers in 1991. Burris is partnering with local attorneys Chase Iron Eyes, director of the Lakota People’s Law Project; Mohini Tangri of Helios Law, Krithi Basu and James Cook of BNCL Law and Trisha Pohland, a Minneapolis litigation partner.

Federal agents “have violated the law, and laws, of the rights of the people in this community and they’ve done it in a number of different ways,” Burris said Thursday.

The U.S. government now has to respond or deny the tort claims before a federal class action lawsuit is filed, Burris said. The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to the allegations.

Among the allegations raised in the claims:

Burris said more complaints are expected in the coming months, with as many as 80 people approaching them with legitimate claims against federal immigration agents.