Federal authorities are now formally involved in the fallout from a controversial protest that unfolded inside a St. Paul church, marking another escalation in the widening confrontation over immigration enforcement in Minnesota. On Sunday, the U.S. Department of Justice confirmed it is investigating a group of protesters who disrupted a worship service at Cities Church after alleging that one of the church’s pastors is also a senior official with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Video livestreamed on the Facebook page of Black Lives Matter Minnesota shows protesters entering the sanctuary during services and chanting slogans such as “ICE out” and “Justice for Renee Good.” Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, was fatally shot earlier this month by an ICE agent during a confrontation in Minneapolis, an incident that has become a rallying point for anti-ICE activism amid an expanded federal enforcement operation in the Twin Cities.
The protesters contend that David Easterwood, listed on the church’s website as a pastor, is also the acting director of ICE’s St. Paul field office and therefore directly responsible for enforcement tactics they describe as violent and unlawful.
Public records and court filings identify an ICE official with the same name who has appeared in federal proceedings and alongside Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem at an October press conference in Minneapolis. Cities Church did not respond to requests for comment, and it remains unclear whether Easterwood was present during the service or participated in the livestreamed portion.
She just…posted everyone involved.
And then PINNED it to her profile. Incredible. pic.twitter.com/nukgJ5JZgd
— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) January 19, 2026
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon announced that the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division is examining whether the protest violated federal civil rights laws, including protections for religious worship. In a public statement, Dhillon emphasized that houses of worship are not public forums for protest and are protected from interference under federal law. Attorney General Pam Bondi echoed that position, stating that any violations uncovered by the investigation would be prosecuted.
Activist leaders involved in the protest rejected the investigation outright. Nekima Levy Armstrong, who leads the Racial Justice Network and identifies herself as an ordained reverend, characterized the DOJ’s response as a diversion from what she described as abuses committed by federal agents.
She argued that the presence of an ICE official in church leadership raises moral and theological concerns that outweigh the disruption of a worship service. Black Lives Matter Minnesota co-founder Monique Cullars-Doty made similar remarks, framing the protest as a necessary response to what she called the moral contradiction of immigration enforcement leadership within a church.
Federal agencies have taken a sharply different view. ICE issued a statement warning that activists are expanding their targets beyond officers and hotels to include churches, portraying the incident as part of a broader pattern of intimidation against federal personnel. The controversy has also revived scrutiny of Easterwood’s earlier testimony in court, where he defended ICE tactics such as license-plate swapping and the use of chemical irritants, citing increased threats to agents.
