6 month old child in the ice agents tossing a smoke bomb in to the car in Minneapolis
Executive summary
Multiple local and national outlets report that a Minneapolis family with six children — including a 6‑month‑old — were enveloped by smoke and concussive munitions during a chaotic federal law‑enforcement action; the parents and several news organizations say three children, including the infant, were taken to hospital after a flash‑bang or tear‑gas device affected their van [1] [2] [3] [4]. Federal authorities describe a separate sequence in which an ICE officer was assaulted and fired, and say agents were conducting a targeted traffic stop amid a crowd; DHS acknowledges operations and crowd control measures but its public statements do not fully corroborate the family’s account that agents intentionally “threw” a device under the van [5] [6].
1. What the family and multiple reporters say happened
Shawn and Destiny Jackson tell reporters they were trying to drive home with six children when federal agents deploying tear gas and flash‑bangs approached their stopped van, that a device rolled under the vehicle and detonated, the blast triggered airbags and filled the cabin with smoke, and three children — including a 6‑month‑old — were taken by ambulance after the infant briefly stopped breathing, accounts carried by FOX 9, the New York Times, CBS Minnesota and local papers [2] [1] [7] [4].
2. What federal and city officials have publicly said
The Department of Homeland Security framed the night as a targeted traffic stop that escalated when officers say a suspect fled and bystanders assaulted an agent, prompting a defensive gunshot; DHS and Minneapolis officials confirmed that tear gas and other crowd‑control measures were used during the broader operation, and the Minneapolis Office of Community Safety reported that two children — one reportedly a 6‑month‑old — were hospitalized after federal agents deployed tear gas [5] [8] [6].
3. Independent corroboration and discrepancies in reporting
Contemporaneous coverage from several outlets documents the same central facts — hospitalizations, a family’s claim of a device under the van, and heavy use of crowd control — but differ on whether there is video or forensic confirmation that ICE deliberately “threw” a flash‑bang into a family car; some reports rely predominantly on family testimony and eyewitness video of the chaotic scene, while DHS releases emphasize agent safety and a prior shooting incident, leaving a gap between the family’s specific allegation of intent and independently verified physical evidence in the public record so far [3] [5] [4].
4. Open questions investigators still need to answer
Key factual uncertainties remain: whether the device that exploded under the van was placed by federal agents or arrived from another source in the melee; whether the canister that rolled beneath the vehicle was a tear‑gas munition, a flash‑bang, or another crowd‑control device; and what medical records show about the infant’s condition and direct cause for hospitalization — none of which has been fully documented in the reporting available to date and will hinge on official forensic and medical findings now under review [2] [9].
5. Why narratives and agendas matter in how this is reported
This incident is unfolding amid intense scrutiny of ICE operations after the fatal shooting of Renee Good, and both critics of federal tactics and ICE defenders have incentives to frame the episode in starkly different ways: advocacy outlets highlight the family’s trauma and civilian harm [10], while DHS and some local officials highlight officer safety and alleged assaults during the stop [5]; readers should note that source selection and emphasis can shift focus from the narrow factual question of who placed the device to broader debates about federal presence and crowd policing [11].
6. Bottom line
Reliable reporting across multiple outlets documents that children, including a 6‑month‑old, were exposed to tear gas/munitions and taken to hospital after a violent federal operation in north Minneapolis, and the parents assert a flash‑bang or gas device was rolled under their van and detonated; however, public records and official statements available so far do not definitively establish intent or chain of custody for the device, and ongoing investigations by city and federal authorities will be necessary to resolve those specific factual disputes [1] [2] [6] [4].