‘My eyes were stinging’: The chemicals used by ICE when they confront protesters

The shooting of Venezuelan immigrant Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis on Wednesday by a federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent sparked a raucous confrontation between law enforcement and protesters, some of whom lit fireworks while others chanted or simply bore witness.

The day after the dangerous conflict, people still wheezed and coughed as they cleaned up along the 600 block of 24th Avenue North — the apparent result of chemical irritants unleashed in an effort to quell demonstrators. 

“Whatever the chemical irritant was, it was everywhere,” said Aurin Chowdhury, a Minneapolis City Council member present at the scene of the shooting. “There were giant clouds that were fogging the streetlights making the sky an almost pale yellow.”

“My eyes were stringing,” Chowdhury added. “My throat got really scratchy and itchy.”

It is not exactly clear what chemicals law enforcement deployed and how often they were used. The Minnesota Department of Public Safety said that any state troopers on the scene did not use chemical irritants. 

As to what chemicals might be in the air following last night’s incident, state Public Safety officials said that was a question for ICE. Messages left with ICE on Thursday went unreturned.

Messages left with the Minneapolis Police Department also were not returned. 

Metallic canisters littered in snowbanks and streets Thursday throughout the residential neighborhood. Many were disposed of into garbage bags by volunteers who arrived to help clean up.  

Here is a look at what these chemicals appear to be and why they might be used.

Not gases that just go away

An examination of some of these canisters found that they contained CS (2-chlorobenzalmalononitrile) and OC (Oleoresin Capiscum), which is the same chemical agent found in pepper spray. All the recovered canisters were manufactured by Defense Technology, a Caspar, Wyoming, based company.

Sven-Eric Jordt, Ph.D., a professor of anesthesiology at Duke University, reviewed the canisters for MinnPost after we provided pictures of them.

According to Jordt, one of the canisters found is called the Triple-Chaser Separating Canister. 

Defense Technology bills the Triple-Chaser Separating Canister as a grenade in which the separate canisters split apart and land “approximately 20 feet apart allowing increased area coverage in a short period of time.”

This type of canister is known for spreading chemicals out over a large surface area, said Thor Eells, executive director for the National Tactical Officers Association, a training resource and forum for law enforcement officers.

Other canisters found on the scene of the shooting and ensuing protest were the Pocket Tactical Grenade CS and the Rubber Ball Blast Grenade CS.

Additionally, we discovered a Flameless Tri-Chamber OC Grenade. This particular grenade is described by Defense Technology as allowing “chemical-laden smoke to be released through three ports on the outer canister side.”

Related: Trump threatens to send federal troops to Minnesota to quell protests

The company boasts that the Flameless Tri-Chamber OC Grenade safely contains “fire-producing properties within the two internal canisters.”

Jordt said that exposure to any of the aforementioned irritants can cause short and long- term health concerns impacting the eyes, skin and lungs. 

Specifically, the anesthesiologist elaborated, the chemical can cause eye irritation, increased tear production and involuntary eye twitching. 

Furthermore, exposure may lead to high amounts of mucous production in lungs and airways, which can make breathing difficult and lead to swelling in the airways. 

And there is the risk of burning from the irritants — including internal burning in lungs. 

“These are not really gases that are volatile and just go away,” said Jordt.

Asthmatics and anyone with limited respiratory capacity, including children and pregnant people, are especially vulnerable, he added.

If someone is exposed to these chemicals, Jordt recommends they see a doctor as soon as possible. He recommends using cold water to wash particles off the skin. Hot or warm water increases the heat associated with chemical agents, causing more pain and possible swelling.  

Jordt also counseled people to remove clothing exposed to the irritants and (if possible) dispose of their garments immediately. 

“Don’t take your clothes into your apartment or your house,” said Jordt. “You might spread these particles, and they can linger a long time.”

Part of the ICE strategy

The chemicals we uncovered today are identical to those found in Chicago when ICE agents entered the Windy City in October. 

In Chicago, journalists and civil rights activists sued ICE in a case that partly called for the ban of these chemical agents. A federal judge in Illinois sided with the plaintiffs, but the people who sued abandoned their litigation after ICE (for the most part) left Chicago. 

As MinnPost has previously reported, there is no international law banning the use of these chemicals.

However, the Minneapolis City Council passed a resolution earlier this year urging law enforcement not to use sprays and gases, Chowdhury said. 

The City Council member contends ICE uses the chemicals simply to stoke unrest.

“They were not using it to disperse a crowd,” Chowdhury said. “I think they were trying to strike fear in people.”

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