No Rights Denied to Army Vet Held After Assaulting Officer During Minneapolis ICE Op – RedState
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has pushed back against claims by a military veteran and Purple Heart recipient who said he was unfairly accosted, arrested and detained for eight hours by ICE agents in Minneapolis without access to his attorney.
According to William Vermie, 39, he was doing nothing more than standing on the sidewalk and watching ICE agents arrest an individual in his Minneapolis neighborhood on January 13, when he himself was swept aside by the officers.
He ran directly to ABC News about the incident.
“They read me my rights and asked me if I wanted to answer questions without a lawyer, and I said no,” Vermie said in an interview. “And then they said, ‘You’ll have a chance to contact one later.'”
The man added that his wife had in the meantime contacted a lawyer. This lawyer also suggests that he was refused access to his client.
“My client was denied the ability to contact anyone while in ICE custody. If he had access, he would have immediately called his wife,” the attorney told ABC News. “She never received a call, even though her phone was constantly on by her side.”
DHS, however, denies the allegations and says Vermie was arrested for assaulting a law enforcement officer.
FACT CHECKING. This individual was arrested for assaulting a law enforcement officer – a felony and a federal crime.
All detainees have the opportunity to communicate with their family and lawyer.
These media defamations directly led to a 1,347% increase in attacks against… pic.twitter.com/tRXf0sNT43
– Homeland Security (@DHSgov) January 23, 2026
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The department forcefully pushed back on the Army veteran’s claims in an additional statement to ABC.
“This individual was arrested for assaulting a law enforcement officer – a felony and a federal crime,” a spokesperson said. “Our courageous law enforcement officers are grappling with a 1,347% increase in assaults and a staggering 8,000% increase in death threats as they risk their lives to arrest murderers, rapists, pedophiles and gang members.”
You have to love the hero complex that Vermie offers in his explanation of what happened. He throws in a few woke key phrases for good measure, giving the media the exact angle they need for their story.
“I have privilege. I’m medically retired, I’m a combat veteran, I’m white, I’m middle class. If I can’t advocate for people who need it, then who else is going to do it?” he said, holding back tears. “Who else is going to stand up and speak truth to power?”
You would think that if law enforcement went after people with white privilege, the left would be absolutely thrilled. Instead, it’s “If they can do that to white, imagine what they do to others.
While Vermie’s service deserves respect, that obviously won’t excuse the assault of federal officers. This would not excuse obstructing a law enforcement operation. And he knows it.
In Minneapolis, ABC News interviewed Purple Heart veteran William Vermie, who said ICE detained him for hours, denied him access to his lawyer and detained him at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building.
A privileged white man chose to speak when silence was easier. pic.twitter.com/8TVqz2mIm1
-Lesley Abravanel 🪩 (@lesleyabravanel) January 20, 2026
Video of the incident, as mentioned in the ABC News report, captured the moment of Vermie’s arrest but does not show what led up to it.
“The video shows Vermie standing in the way of ICE agents, after which several of them tackle him to the snowy ground and handcuff him before escorting him,” they report.
Included in the ABC column is the fact that Vermie, who did not know his wife had contacted anyone on his behalf, told a DHS agent “he didn’t have one (an attorney).”
DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin says 3,000 arrests were made thanks to the influx of ICE agents in the Minneapolis area, including 150 U.S. citizens charged with assaulting or obstructing law enforcement.
Vermie, meanwhile, says he will continue to protest ICE operations, but admits, “I probably won’t get as close as I did.”
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