ICE Agent ‘Body Checks’ Woman Filming Heated Exchange In Morristown: See Video

MORRISTOWN, NJ — Yet another ICE-related incident took place in Morristown this week, this one resulting in a physical altercation between a federal agent and a bystander, cell phone video acquired by Patch shows.

On Thursday, around 9 a.m., a group of 10 to 15 people, including both civilians and federal agents, gathered outside the area of 8 Abbett Avenue.

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Several protesters and bystanders were also on Abbett Avenue to document ICE's activity.

One interaction between an agent and a bystander has led to questions about the agent's use of physical force.

Physical Altercation

Local woman Alexis Brown happened to be driving on Abbett Avenue when she saw the commotion and pulled over to see what was going on. When she saw it was an ICE operation, she pulled out her phone to document their actions.

"I was walking from one side of the driveway... Cause there was another group of bystanders standing over there, and I wanted to see if they had a better view of what was happening at the house, if they were taking anyone away, so that there would be witnesses," Brown told Patch. "What I was told after the fact was that they had established a perimeter that I had 'breached,' apparently, when I was walking on the sidewalk."

Brown added that there were no cones, signs, or police tape blocking off what she later learned was a perimeter. No such things were seen in her video, either.

In the video, Brown makes her way towards the group of agents and other bystanders when one unmasked agent spots her and seemingly physically stops her from proceeding.

The agent, with a 'POLICE ICE' label on his vest, tells the woman, "This is a crime scene," and to "get out" while physically pushing her backward.

"He runs up, checks me... Kinda knocked the wind out of me... He was fairly belligerent with me. I was certainly not happy about having been shoved," Brown said. "He could've just asked me to back up, given me some kind of verbal warning... I understand enough of the law to know there's proportionality of response, and this did not feel proportional at all. Especially because I am 110 pounds soaking wet, and 5'2, and this dude was huge."

Brown, after only just learning that a perimeter existed, immediately asked for the agent's information, saying she intended to file a complaint against him and calling his actions "assault."

After a heated back-and-forth, the agent tells Brown that his identifier is "13937 DHS," and "That's all you're gonna get," despite Brown asking for his name. The agent also said that he's "The most well-known guy over here," adding, "I don't hide anything."

"I can't stop shaking because look at you, you're incredibly intimidating and I'm scared," Brown tells the agent. "You shoved me for no reason, and I'm scared."

The situation was eventually diffused. Brown said she intends to speak with a lawyer to discuss her legal options following the incident.

"I'm not there to be disruptive or actually hurt anybody, or get in the way of anyone; I'm just there to be a witness and a concerned citizen. I don't know why there needs to be that level of physicality," Brown said. "But, you know, all 110 pounds, 5'2 of me, at 44 years old, I guess was super intimidating for the big, strong ICE agent, so that he needed to physically subdue me."

See Brown's video below (two separate videos spliced together):

Morristown Police Department's Role

That morning, federal immigration agents called the Morristown Police Department to help with crowd control during the ICE operation, local officials said.

Officers from the Morristown Police Department complied only after receiving the request from federal officials. Morristown authorities added they were not aware of the ICE operation beforehand.

Police officers arrived at the scene and established a perimeter to maintain public safety, in accordance with state law, according to local officials.

A police officer can be seen in the video telling bystanders to stand on one side of the sidewalk before Brown makes her attempt to join the bystanders on the other side of the group of agents.

It's after the physical altercation that a Morristown police officer lays out more specific directions of where the perimeter begins.

"I wish (police) had told me, or been more clear in their instructions, to protect me, a citizen," Brown told Patch. "It would've been good if they had preempted the situation, that if they were establishing a perimeter that would lead to a citizen getting assaulted by a federal agent... That could've been communicated a lot more clearly."

Brown adds that after the altercation, a Morristown police officer whose name she did not catch did intervene and "diffused" the ICE agent involved.

"There was a police officer... who came up and was talking to the (agent), maybe trying to talk him down," Brown told Patch. "Doing what I think that police officers, when doing their jobs properly, should do, which is de-escalate and keep people safe... Not trying to control me, but control (the agent)... And I did appreciate that."

Morristown officials said that local police were on the scene "solely to ensure the safety of residents, bystanders, and everyone in the surrounding area."

"Our officers acted appropriately and professionally, doing exactly what they are trained to do: protect the public and maintain the peace. The Morristown Police Department does not participate in federal civil immigration enforcement, and as a community we stand against President Trump's attacks on immigrants," Mayor Dougherty said in a statement. "We will continue working with immigration advocates to ensure that residents know their rights and have access to legal counsel, and our officers remain committed to protecting and serving all members of our community."

It's not clear if/how many people were detained by ICE during the incident, or what their purpose was there. Patch has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment and has not heard back as of Friday afternoon.