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Residents press council after Dorset Street raid: allegations of choking, kidnapping and calls for task force
Summary
Dozens of residents, medics, teachers and activists told the council they witnessed excessive force, choking, and the removal of people not on the warrant during the March 11 ICE operation; many urged a council‑sanctioned task force and independent investigations.
A lengthy public‑comment period at the March 16 South Burlington City Council meeting centered on first‑hand accounts from neighborhood residents and volunteer medics who were present at the March 11 response to ICE activity on Dorset Street. Speakers described traumatic scenes, alleged injuries and named agencies involved. "I was choked until unconsciousness by a state trooper," one speaker said, describing being rendered unresponsive and later treated by medics.
Multiple witnesses described people being removed from the home who were not named on a warrant and said local and state police held positions that they said enabled ICE to carry out detentions. A registered nurse who assisted at the scene said she saw marks around a woman's throat and that the woman reported being choked. Protesters and neighbors asked the council for an independent investigation, transparent release of body‑worn camera footage, and formation of a community task force to coordinate safety and communication if federal enforcement returns.
City officials said the South Burlington Police Department is conducting an internal review and that the council expects independent reviews from other agencies; Chief Breaux acknowledged the seriousness of complaints and pledged that "every use of force will be reviewed." Several speakers warned that community trust had been eroded and urged the council to center the people who were taken and the neighbors who remain traumatized.
