So far at least 6 homes have been raided in Minneapolis and St Paul, with search warrants that look for items like cardboard, bricks, feces, urine, electronic equipments and odd&ends that we are guessing means bomb stuff. I covered one particular site, 2301 23rd Av Minneapolis. The resident collects and sells scrap metal and was gathering food to provide for people at the peace parade. Ten people were crashing there. It was a no-knock raid at 8:30 am, people had lie on the floor in plastic handcuffs.
Then everyone was released except one person who was taken in on some conspiracy charge. A child was there. People were then sent to the sidewalk with no money, no keys, no id, no food, no water and sometimes no shoes. It had been hours when I left and the house was still not released. Very little that I could see that was taken and it was wrapped so we could not see what it was. Some covered buckets came out. Some people were guessing is that someone emptied the toilets, because the search warrant required it.
I heard a police officer on cell phone talking about a tupperware bottles (both cities recycle). A code officer was being called to look for code violations. We expect they will try to board up the house - sort of like immediate punishment for even planning to parade in protect. Last night a house was raided and boarded up. Fortunately we have a great councilperson Dave Thune who told them they have no jurisdiction and ordered the inspections department to open it. Normally it takes a year to close a house due to inspections problems.
Everyone released is telling their stories over independent media like the Uptake. Mnblue has a story. Star Tribune has a story. More mainstream media coverage coming, although I don't know how fair the reporting will be.
Then the last report was about raiding a citizen journalism team - Iteam, phonetically spelled. The police surrounded the duplex waiting for a warrant. The warrant was for the wrong side. More waiting. They invaded and then later everyone was released. As a blogger and citizen journalist, I wonder if I am next. We are truly in a police state. People "detained" without cause, houses closed without a court judgment, warrants on what has to be flimsiest of reasons if they can't even get the address right. What happened to our constitution, our democracy and our freedom.
I will update as more info becomes available.
Update: The Ramsey Sheriff seems to be the force behind the raids. He does not have a good reputation, with stories of people dying in custody, etc.
update 2:53 p.m.
A news release from the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office says these items were confiscated during the raid in St. Paul:
Materials used in creating "sleeping dragons" (pvc pipe, chicken wire, duct tape)
Large amounts of urine (including 3 - 5 gallon buckets of urine)
Wrist Rockets
Assorted edged weapons including a machete, hatchet and several throwing knives
Gas mask and filter
Empty glass bottles
Rags
Flammable liquids
Homemade Caltrops (devises used to disable buses in roads)
Metal pipes
Axes
Bolt cutters
Sledge hammers
Old tires (for burning)
Repelling equipment
Kryptonite locks
Empty plastic buckets cut and made into shields
Material for protective padding
An army helmet
MPR News Cut
And how much of this do you have in your home?
Update: There has just been an arrest by Sheriff cars and highway patrol around a green bus, video up on Uptake. This all seems to be coming from Ramsey County Sheriff Fletcher, with Ramsey county warrants, with one exception. It was a federal search warrant on the Iteam search, the really really disturbing search described above.
Update: here is the picture of what Sheriff Fletcher presented as threatening stuff. In my mind, only the "caltrops" are possibly credible. However I also know that one of the people collects sells scrap metals. These could be scraps from a garden windmill maker, when they messed up and scrapped a piece.