Biting Federal Agents Is Not Protest and This New Jersey Man Just Found Out Why

There’s protesting and then there’s biting chunks out of federal agents. Brendan John Geier, a 26-year-old from Madison, New Jersey, just learned that distinction the hard way when he was slapped with federal assault charges after allegedly sinking his teeth into ICE officers outside the Delaney Hall detention center in Newark.

Let’s be clear about what happened here. This wasn’t some peaceful assembly gone wrong. This wasn’t citizens exercising their First Amendment rights. This was violent resistance against law enforcement officers doing their jobs, and the photos don’t lie. When Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche posted images of bloodied forearms and knuckles to social media, he wasn’t exaggerating. These weren’t scratches. These were the kind of wounds you get when someone decides that assaulting a federal officer is an acceptable form of political expression.

According to the Department of Justice, Geier was part of a group blocking the road near Delaney Hall on Thursday night. ICE deportation officers gave clear instructions to move. The group ignored those commands. What followed wasn’t civil disobedience. It was a melee where Geier allegedly kicked officers before biting down on one officer’s forearm and another’s knuckle. Both victims needed hospital treatment.

Think about that for a second. These officers were trying to do their jobs, executing lawful deportations of individuals who violated our immigration laws. And their reward? Getting bitten like they wandered into a cage match instead of a public street in New Jersey.

The broader context here matters because this wasn’t an isolated incident. We’ve seen multiple clashes outside Delaney Hall in recent days, with nine additional arrests reported. There’s a pattern emerging, and it’s not one that reflects well on those who claim they’re simply advocating for immigrant rights. You can disagree with immigration enforcement. You can protest policies you find unjust. But the moment you put your hands (or teeth) on law enforcement, you’ve crossed a line that no democratic society can tolerate.

Blanche didn’t mince words when he wrote that these riots are clearly not peaceful protests. He’s right. The evidence is literally written in blood on officers’ arms. When did we decide that federal agents enforcing duly passed laws deserve to be treated like enemy combatants? When did violence become an acceptable substitute for persuasion?

Here’s what gets lost in these conversations about immigration enforcement. ICE officers aren’t making policy. They’re executing it. Congress passes laws. Presidents set priorities. Courts adjudicate cases. And then officers on the ground carry out those decisions. Attacking them accomplishes nothing except landing yourself in federal court, which is exactly where Geier found himself Friday when he appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Cari Fais.

The charge is serious: assaulting federal officers and causing bodily injury. It carries real consequences because it has to. If we allow political disagreements to devolve into physical attacks on law enforcement, we don’t have a functioning republic anymore. We have chaos.

This isn’t about left or right. It’s about basic civic order. You want to change immigration policy? Vote. Organize. Lobby your representatives. Write compelling arguments. Build coalitions. What you don’t get to do is bite federal agents and call it activism. That’s not resistance. That’s assault, plain and simple, and the Justice Department is treating it accordingly.

The message from federal prosecutors couldn’t be clearer: assault a federal officer and you’ll be held accountable. That’s not authoritarian overreach. That’s the bare minimum requirement for a society governed by laws rather than mob violence.