Providence RI — ICE Courthouse Arrest of High School Intern Sparks Legislation
contested
— November 20, 2025: ICE in plain clothes surrounded a state judge's car outside the Licht Judicial Complex and detained his high school intern for 30 minutes after mistaking a teenager for their target — a man in his 30s. Sen. Whitehouse confronted DHS Sec. Noem at a March 2026 Senate hearing. Rhode Island legislators introduced courthouse arrest protection bills; a state House panel heard testimony in March 2026. RI federal courts are processing 59 immigration detention challenges in 2026, equal to all of 2025.