It seems our friends in federal tactical gear missed the memo on the First Amendment again.
Jana Shortal, a veteran anchor at KARE 11, found out the hard way that “playing by the rules” is optional for those wearing the badge.
While covering the scene where federal agents fatally shot a 37-year-old man in South Minneapolis, Shortal was met with a face full of pepper spray.
Because apparently, reporting the news is now a contact sport.
“Behind the Line” and Under Attack
Shortal wasn’t exactly storming the barricades.
She was “cleared marked press” and standing “behind the police tape,” according to her Instagram caption.
When an agent told her to move back, she actually listened.
But complying with orders doesn’t mean much when the other side is looking for an excuse to get physical.
The “Protect and Shove” Strategy
While she was moving back, a second agent decided to escalate things.
Shortal says she was pushed, even as she made her identity clear.
“I yelled I am press don’t push me, he shoved me again. And then I was sprayed,” Shortal wrote in her caption.
“I was behind the line. I played by the rules doing my job. They did not,” Shortal said in a video posted on Instagram.
It’s a classic MAGA-era fever dream: if you don’t like the witness, just pepper-spray their eyes shut.
Three Shootings
This isn’t just a one-off “oopsie” by a stressed-out agent.
This was the third shooting in just 17 days involving federal immigration agents.
It’s also the second time in that window they’ve killed a Minneapolis resident.
The “law and order” crowd seems much more interested in the “shooting” part than the “law” part.
Tear Gas for Breakfast
As protesters gathered to express the radical idea that people shouldn’t be shot, the feds broke out the toys.
Agents deployed tear gas, flash bangs, and “less-lethal” munitions on the crowd.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara declared it an unlawful assembly.
“We are responsible for ensuring the safety of people on the streets of our city,” O’Hara said, though one might wonder if that includes safety from the people supposedly providing the help.
A “Sustainable” Disaster
The city is currently on emergency recall, with everyone from the State Patrol to suburban sheriffs’ departments flooding in.
O’Hara says they are working to extinguish two small fires while begging people to avoid the area.
“We understand your frustrations. This is not sustainable,” O’Hara said around 12 p.m.
He’s right about one thing.
Having federal agents roam the streets pepper-spraying journalists and shooting residents is definitely not sustainable.
