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November 24, 2025 – USA –
Freelance photojournalist Dave Decker was among more than 30 individuals arrested on November 22, 2025, while covering a protest outside the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) center in Miami-Dade County. Decker was on assignment for multiple outlets when he documented law enforcement officers detaining demonstrators. Despite wearing press credentials and identifying himself as media, he was handcuffed without warning.
Authorities charged him with trespassing after prior warning and resisting an officer without violence. In addition, his camera gear and vehicle were impounded; his equipment was put into custody and remains under seizure. Decker was held in detention for over 30 hours and released on bond early on November 24.
In statements to the media, Decker described the arrest as surprising and unprovoked, stressing that he was merely witnessing and documenting the detentions of protesters, standing to the side and not obstructing officers. “I was wearing press credentials,” he said, noting that even after showing official identification, law enforcement ignored his status as a journalist.
The incident has drawn sharp criticism from press-freedom defenders, who warn that arresting working journalists and confiscating their gear while covering protests undermines fundamental rights to report and to public information. It comes just weeks after other documented cases of journalists — even those clearly identified as press — being detained or physically targeted while covering immigration-related protests elsewhere in the United States.
The arrest of Dave Decker serves as a troubling reminder that press credentials offer no guarantee of protection. When journalists are detained while performing their job, the public’s access to real-time reporting and oversight of state actions is put at risk — and the chilling effect on media coverage may deter others from documenting events of public interest.
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