Photojournalist hit with baton, doused with irritant at New Jersey protest

Photojournalist Ryan Murphy was struck in the leg with a baton and pepper-sprayed by federal officers while covering a protest against Immigration and Customs Enforcement and its treatment of detainees in Newark, New Jersey, on May 27, 2026.

Protests outside the Delaney Hall immigration detention facility began May 22, when many detainees went on a hunger strike. Members of Congress, state and local lawmakers and rights groups have alleged dire conditions at the facility.

Federal officers responded to the protests with chemical irritants, physical force and arrests. The Department of Homeland Security has denied allegations of detainee mistreatment.

Murphy told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he was walking through the protest when an ICE officer hit the back of his leg with a baton.

“He full-on targeted me and hit me full on with his baton, and I looked at him and said, ‘I’m press,’” said Murphy, who added that the officer apologized. Murphy, who was on assignment for Reuters, was wearing press credentials and carrying his cameras at the time. “He didn’t seem to care, he was just throwing his baton everywhere, being super aggressive.”

Murphy said he witnessed an officer strike a protester in the face with a baton. He was also pepper-sprayed — in situations that were both targeted at him and other media or during periods when he was caught in the cross fire.

“It seemed pretty indiscriminate that they were just kind of blanketing people with pepper spray, just pointing in a general direction and just letting it rip,” said Murphy, who felt the sting of the irritant until the next morning. “My entire shirt was stained orange.”

The next day, his hand was struck with a baton, requiring stitches.

In a statement emailed to the Tracker on June 1, DHS said anyone who obstructs law enforcement or disrupts its operations would be prosecuted. It did not address its use of force against members of the press.

“We remind members of the media to exercise caution as they cover these violent riots and remind journalists that covering unlawful activities in the field does come with risks,” the statement read. “Our officers take every reasonable precaution to mitigate those dangers to those exercising protected First Amendment rights.”