U.S. Press Freedom Tracker

NY Times reporter detained with zip ties in Minnesota BLM protest

Incident Details

REUTERS/LEAH MILLIS

Protesters take cover from fumes of chemical irritants released by the police in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, on April 13, 2021. Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs, a reporter for The New York Times, was detained by police as he covered the protest.

— REUTERS/LEAH MILLIS
April 13, 2021

A national reporter for The New York Times was detained by police who bound his hands behind his back with zip ties on April 13, 2021, as he reported on a Black Lives Matter protest in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota.

Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs, who was covering protests that erupted after the April 11 killing of 20-year-old Daunte Wright, a Black man who was shot by a white police officer during a traffic stop, was later released without charge.

Demonstrators protested outside the Brooklyn Center Police Department for days after Wright’s death. The protests coincided with the trial of a former police officer in nearby Minneapolis in the death of George Floyd, rekindling a wave of demonstrations against racial injustice and police brutality that had started nearly a year earlier.

People had been throwing water bottles and other items at police, according to a Times summary of Bogel-Burroughs’ account of the incident that he wrote for the newspaper’s in-house museum, Museum at The Times, where his zip ties are on display.

As everyone started running away, Bogel-Burroughs said that he turned back briefly to record the arrest of a person who was thrown to the ground near a gas station.

“When I turned to flee again, I was stopped by a young officer who ordered me to lie on my stomach,” Bogel-Burroughs wrote. “I told him I was with The New York Times, but he said it did not matter and zip-tied my hands behind my back. Over the next hour, police officers took my photograph, asked me questions and stood me in a line with dozens of other people who were all waiting to be taken to jail.”

Bogel-Burroughs added that his editor called while he was detained, and that he was able to answer his phone in spite of the zip ties and dictated that the protest was winding down.

Bogel-Burroughs didn’t respond to multiple messages from the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker seeking comment.

On April 16, police detained at least 12 journalists who were covering protests in Brooklyn Center.

More than two dozen media and advocacy organizations sent a letter to Gov. Tim Walz on April 17 expressing concern about the detainments and other police treatment of journalists since the protests began.

“Journalists must be allowed to safely cover protests and civil unrest. I’ve directed our law enforcement partners to make changes that will help ensure journalists do not face barriers to doing their jobs,” the governor posted on Twitter after meeting with representatives of the media.

Find all incidents related to Black Lives Matter and anti-police brutality protests here.

The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker catalogues press freedom violations in the United States. Email tips to [email protected].