FILE – Tear gas is deployed as hundreds of people protest outside the ICE building in Portland, January 31, 2026.
Eli Imadali / OPB
A panel of judges on the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals imposed two temporary bans on the use of chemical munitions outside U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities in Portland.
The parallel rulings, released Tuesday, deal a legal blow to protesters and residents of an apartment complex near the facility. They separately sought to prevent federal law enforcement from using tear gas, pepper balls and other chemicals as means of crowd control.
Two federal judges in the District of Oregon initially agreed to ban the weapons, but the appeals panel suspended the ban this summer. Tuesday’s decisions officially overturn both bans.
Both lawsuits stem from clashes outside the facility, most of which took place in late 2025. Federal agents stationed at the facility repeatedly clashed with protesters who opposed President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda.
Although the intersection outside the South Waterfront facility has been relatively quiet for most of the year, there is a non-zero chance that large protests could resume as Trump enters the final two years of his presidency.
The outcome of the two trials will guide federal law enforcement strategies for deploying tear gas, flash grenades and other munitions against crowds, if they reappear.
The protesters had argued that the frequent use of tear gas was illegal because it violated their First Amendment rights. Neighbors in a nearby apartment complex separately claimed that the tear gas, which leaked into their homes, violated their civil liberties.
Earlier this year, two Oregon district judges agreed to immediately, but temporarily, restrict the federal government’s use of tear gas until a full hearing could be held.
The U.S. Department of Justice appealed and found its arguments more convincing in appeals courts. In July, the appeals panel temporarily stayed the Oregon district judge’s decision. Their opinions Tuesday made it official.
In a 2-1 decision, the appeals court wrote that the neighbors — collectively called REACH Community Development in their lawsuit — have not presented a compelling argument that the Constitution protects them from exposure to tear gas when federal agents use the munitions for crowd control.
The neighbors live in Gray’s Landing, an affordable housing complex located around the corner from ICE facilities. Residents said tear gas was so pervasive that they had to wear gas masks to sleep, among other precautions. Some neighbors said the chemicals exacerbated pre-existing health problems.
“We are deeply disappointed by this decision, which leaves the residents of Gray’s Landing without the protection they sought after chemical munitions deployed by federal agents repeatedly polluted their homes and disrupted their daily lives,” Sky Perryman, of the legal group Democracy Forward which is helping represent the plaintiffs in the REACH case, wrote in a statement.
However, the ruling simply terminates the Oregon district judge’s injunction. This does not end the entire trial and the lawyers can continue to pursue it.
In a separate 2-1 decision, the appeals panel also disputed that federal law enforcement violated the free speech rights of protesters and independent journalists by deploying tear gas.
Protesters and independent journalists — represented by the Oregon chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union — had said officers unnecessarily used tear gas and other devices against crowds that posed no physical threat.
“Law enforcement officers may use non-lethal force to disperse crowds and restore order – they do not need to wait until they are confronted with an ‘imminent threat of physical harm,’” Circuit Judge Kenneth K. Lee wrote.
Attorneys for the ACLU did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The U.S. Department of Justice did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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