Federal Magistrate Denies Gag Order Request in Minneapolis ICE Interference Case

Magistrate Judge Elsa Bullard of the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota denied a request for a gag order on Wednesday in the case of U.S. v. Doyle. The defendant, Joshua Doyle, had asked the court to prohibit further public statements by the government and to require former Attorney General Pam Bondi to remove two posts she made on the social media platform X.

The government filed a criminal complaint on January 26, 2026, alleging that Doyle forcibly assaulted, resisted, opposed, impeded, or interfered with a Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent performing official duties in Minneapolis. The complaint states that Doyle made physical contact with the agent, in violation of federal law.

, stating that federal agents had arrested 16 Minnesota rioters for allegedly assaulting federal law enforcement. The post said the Department of Justice would continue enforcing the law. m. included a booking-style photo of Doyle. Doyle argued that the posts violated his privacy interests, undermined his presumption of innocence, and risked prejudicing potential jurors.

Judge Bullard found that Doyle had not demonstrated that the two posts created a substantial likelihood of material prejudice to his trial. The ruling noted that the posts were far less extensive than the prolonged publicity examined in earlier cases where courts found no constitutional violation.

The judge also observed that Bondi is no longer serving as Attorney General and that ordering deletion of the original posts would not address any republication by others. The court rejected the request to restrain further government statements about the case.