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September 11, 2026

7 entries on this date.

ICE held UW Medicine worker Robert Sidhe in Tacoma detention through a stroke-risk medical emergency it could not safely treat

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained Robert Sidhe, a 43-year-old UW Medicine patient care technician with a pending asylum application, on August 26, 2026, and held him at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, Washington, where he suffered a medical emergency with severely elevated blood pressure and stroke-like symptoms and was taken by ambulance to a hospital. At a September 11, 2026 hearing, U.S. District Court Judge Tiffany Cartwright found the risk of a future stroke, combined with the difficulty of accessing emergency care in detention, could be "catastrophic," and issued a temporary restraining order requiring Sidhe's release ahead of a full habeas corpus hearing.

Trump demanded Smithsonian replace 1967 modernist sculpture with 30-foot George Washington statue, scrap 'Restorative History' center

On September 11, 2026, President Trump posted on Truth Social directing the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History to remove the "Infinity" sculpture that has stood outside the museum since 1967 and replace it with a 30-foot statue of George Washington, plus install an 11-foot Washington statue in Flag Hall by September 17. He also called for the museum's recently-ended "Center for Restorative History" to be replaced with a "Center for American Heroes." The Smithsonian operates outside the executive branch under its own Board of Regents, and it was not immediately clear whether Trump has authority to compel the changes.

Reporting revealed Interior Department disapproved 130+ national park funding agreements over recipients' alignment with administration priorities

On September 11, 2026, reporting disclosed that the U.S. Department of the Interior had disapproved more than 130 previously secured national park partnership funding agreements worth over $25 million, affecting parks including Joshua Tree, Yellowstone, Yosemite, Effigy Mounds and Denali. Interior said it rejected agreements with groups "actively working against the best interests of the American people and the priorities of this administration" without identifying which policies the groups had violated, and the nonprofit Great Basin Institute alone lost more than 70 agreements worth over $12.7 million with no direct contact from Interior about the decision. The exact date of the disapprovals was not established by reporting -- described only as "last month" (August 2026) -- so the event is recorded on the date of disclosure.

DHS Secretary Mullin confirmed criminal investigation into Rep. Ilhan Omar's 2009 marriage, raised deportation threat

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin confirmed on September 11, 2026 that DHS is investigating Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) over a long-standing, unproven allegation that her 2009 marriage to a British citizen was immigration fraud, saying deportation was possible if fraud is proven. Two days later, White House border czar Tom Homan told Fox News the matter was an ongoing criminal investigation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations unit that could trigger denaturalization proceedings. No charges have been filed.

DHS inspector general found Florida's 'Alligator Alcatraz' held detainees in outdoor cages mislabeled 'calming areas'

A Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General report published September 11, 2026 found that Florida's now-closed "Alligator Alcatraz" immigration detention facility in Ochopee confined 79 detainees in small indoor and outdoor metal enclosures, roughly 4 feet by 4 feet and 16-18 square feet, that staff called "calming areas" -- for an average of about 59 minutes and up to nearly two hours between July 17, 2025 and January 18, 2026, with at least one documented case tied to a detainee's noncompliance with a lawful command rather than de-escalation. The report also found general-population housing providing as little as 28 square feet per detainee against Florida's 75-square-foot jail standard, food freezers held at 10-14°F, unsanitary drinking-water containers, showers limited to three times weekly amid insect infestation, and Special Management Unit detainees without operable phones or legal-material access. The Federal Emergency Management Agency had obligated $608.4 million to Florida for the facility, which operated under a state-federal 287(g) delegation and closed in June 2026.

San Jose police officer fired for sharing Flock camera data with cousin, a domestic-violence suspect

San Jose Police Chief Paul Joseph announced on September 11, 2026 that the department had fired an officer for using his personal phone to access the city's Flock automated license-plate-reader database and share a vehicle's location with his cousin, who was the suspect in a domestic-violence case. The cousin used the information to locate the victim. The department placed the officer on leave, referred the matter to the district attorney's office for possible criminal charges, and changed policy to block personal-device access to the data.

Guilford County, NC detention officer forged magistrates' signatures on 20 ICE detainer forms, unlawfully holding inmates

A Guilford County, North Carolina detention officer forged magistrates' signatures on 20 state-required AOC-CR-662 forms — the documents that authorize holding an inmate up to 48 hours for ICE pickup — the Guilford County Sheriff's Office disclosed on September 11, 2026. All 20 inmates named on the forms, each the subject of a legitimate ICE detainer, were held in jail on the strength of the fabricated signatures. The officer, Michael Shaun Diehl Jr., was fired and arrested on 20 counts of common-law forgery, then released on a $5,000 bond.