ICE facility neighbors forced to sleep in gas masks because of 'reckless' agents: lawsuit
Tenants and an owner at a Portland, Oregon apartment across the street from an ICE field office have filed a lawsuit against DHS and ICE, accusing agents of using chemical munitions in a "reckless manner" for months, according to reports.
The residents living in Gray's Landing, an affordable housing apartment about 100 feet from the ICE field office, have asked the court to stop ICE agents from using tear gas unless it's a matter of life or death, The Washington Post reported.
The use of chemicals has reportedly been so bad that people living at the apartment have had to wear gas masks to sleep or even sleep in their bathtubs to try and escape the tear gas wafting inside their homes, they said in court declarations.
"Janice Lineberger, whose balcony faces the ICE facility, said that she struggles to breath[e] in her living room and that her voice is now gravelly, 'as if I was a chain smoker,'" The Post reported.
"The property management company that runs Gray’s Landing and a group of residents initially filed the lawsuit in December. Their complaint alleges that the federal agents’ conduct has been excessive," according to The Post.
DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin pointed the finger at "rioters" in a statement Sunday. She said they have set off fireworks, thrown items at agents and ignored commands.
“The fact that this particular location is experiencing this behavior more frequently than most others, is not remotely ICE’s fault,” McLaughlin said. “That lies squarely with the rioters and with the state and local authorities who fail to maintain law and order on their streets.”
President Donald Trump's DOJ has called the protests outside the Oregon facility a “dangerous risk of rebellion” and used that claim to argue for Trump to deploy the National Guard in Oregon, according to The Post.
A charter school also relocated from the area in summer 2025, "after condemning federal agents’ use of tear gas near the school."