A person blows a whistle as Border Patrol agents arrest a man on January 8, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Mischief Toy Store in Saint Paul has given out thousands of free whistles to residents organizing against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
St. Paul Toy Store Subjected to Surprise 'Audit' Hours After Criticizing ICE in TV Interview
"ICE is doing far more to hurt our community than immigrants ever have," a co-owner of Mischief Toy Store said last week, hours before ICE agents delivered audit papers.
A toy store in Saint Paul is facing its first audit of its employees in more than 27 years of operating after one of the shop's owners spoke out about US Immigration and Customs Enforcement's aggressive arrests in the Twin Cities and detailed how the business is helping to protect immigrant neighbors.
Abigail Adelsheim-Marshall spoke last week with ABC News about how her family-owned store, Mischief Toy Store, has been giving out 3D-printed whistles to help community members—following the lead of people in Chicago last year—to warn their neighbors when ICE and other federal agents are in the area.
The whistles were designed to be "a nonviolent form of protest and alert everyone around that there's ICE activity going on," said Adelsheim-Marshall. “Everyone is looking for anything they can do to help their community right now.”
She added that her community is being "terrorized by ICE" and said demand for the whistles has risen following an ICE agent's killing of Renee Good.
"ICE is doing far more to hurt our community than immigrants ever have," said Adelsheim-Marshall. "Almost every customer who comes in tells us about encounters they've had with ICE."
Hours after the interview, in which an ABC News correspondent noted that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) referenced the use of whistles to warn about ICE operations last week in a social media post, two ICE agents arrived at Mischief Toy Store and delivered an audit notice to co-owner Dan Marshall, Adelsheim-Marshall's father.
Marshall and Adelsheim-Marshall were given three business days to turn over federal I-9 forms to prove their five Minnesota-born part-time employees were hired legally, as well as payroll records, tax returns, and other documents.
"We feel very strongly that we were targeted based on the content of Abby's interview that day," Marshall told the Minnesota Star Tribune on Tuesday, as the deadline for the audit approached.
Matthew Gertz, a senior fellow at Media Matters for America, agreed and said the DHS audit appeared to be "immediate punishment for speaking out against the regime."
Mark Jacob, an author and Chicago-area journalist added that ICE's targeting of the toy store offered proof that "it's not about making Minnesota 'safe'—it's about making Minnesota subservient."
A bottomless well of vengeance.
[image or embed]
— Renée Graham 🏳️🌈 (@rygraham.bsky.social) January 21, 2026 at 7:45 AM
Last year, the Mischief owners joined a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump's tariffs and Marshall spoke in a TV interview about how the president's trade was causing anxiety among small business owners.
Following the news of the DHS audit, the Adelsheim-Marshall family and their community have not been deterred from coming to the defense of their neighbors—including the toy store itself.
On Saturday, the day after the ABC News interview and the audit delivery, Marshall told the Star Tribune that the store "sold 250 anti-ICE yard signs in the first three hours that we were open."
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
A toy store in Saint Paul is facing its first audit of its employees in more than 27 years of operating after one of the shop's owners spoke out about US Immigration and Customs Enforcement's aggressive arrests in the Twin Cities and detailed how the business is helping to protect immigrant neighbors.
Abigail Adelsheim-Marshall spoke last week with ABC News about how her family-owned store, Mischief Toy Store, has been giving out 3D-printed whistles to help community members—following the lead of people in Chicago last year—to warn their neighbors when ICE and other federal agents are in the area.
The whistles were designed to be "a nonviolent form of protest and alert everyone around that there's ICE activity going on," said Adelsheim-Marshall. “Everyone is looking for anything they can do to help their community right now.”
She added that her community is being "terrorized by ICE" and said demand for the whistles has risen following an ICE agent's killing of Renee Good.
"ICE is doing far more to hurt our community than immigrants ever have," said Adelsheim-Marshall. "Almost every customer who comes in tells us about encounters they've had with ICE."
Hours after the interview, in which an ABC News correspondent noted that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) referenced the use of whistles to warn about ICE operations last week in a social media post, two ICE agents arrived at Mischief Toy Store and delivered an audit notice to co-owner Dan Marshall, Adelsheim-Marshall's father.
Marshall and Adelsheim-Marshall were given three business days to turn over federal I-9 forms to prove their five Minnesota-born part-time employees were hired legally, as well as payroll records, tax returns, and other documents.
"We feel very strongly that we were targeted based on the content of Abby's interview that day," Marshall told the Minnesota Star Tribune on Tuesday, as the deadline for the audit approached.
Matthew Gertz, a senior fellow at Media Matters for America, agreed and said the DHS audit appeared to be "immediate punishment for speaking out against the regime."
Mark Jacob, an author and Chicago-area journalist added that ICE's targeting of the toy store offered proof that "it's not about making Minnesota 'safe'—it's about making Minnesota subservient."
A bottomless well of vengeance.
[image or embed]
— Renée Graham 🏳️🌈 (@rygraham.bsky.social) January 21, 2026 at 7:45 AM
Last year, the Mischief owners joined a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump's tariffs and Marshall spoke in a TV interview about how the president's trade was causing anxiety among small business owners.
Following the news of the DHS audit, the Adelsheim-Marshall family and their community have not been deterred from coming to the defense of their neighbors—including the toy store itself.
On Saturday, the day after the ABC News interview and the audit delivery, Marshall told the Star Tribune that the store "sold 250 anti-ICE yard signs in the first three hours that we were open."
- 'My US Citizenship Did Not Protect Me': Community Hearing Details ICE Horrors in Minneapolis ›
- Woman Killed by ICE Identified as Protesters Take to Streets in Minneapolis and Beyond ›
- To Threat of Troop Deployment, Minneapolis Mayor Vows City 'Will Not Be Intimidated' ›
- St. Paul Mayor: ICE Car Crash Shows 'Operation Metro Surge Needs to End Immediately' | Common Dreams ›
A toy store in Saint Paul is facing its first audit of its employees in more than 27 years of operating after one of the shop's owners spoke out about US Immigration and Customs Enforcement's aggressive arrests in the Twin Cities and detailed how the business is helping to protect immigrant neighbors.
Abigail Adelsheim-Marshall spoke last week with ABC News about how her family-owned store, Mischief Toy Store, has been giving out 3D-printed whistles to help community members—following the lead of people in Chicago last year—to warn their neighbors when ICE and other federal agents are in the area.
The whistles were designed to be "a nonviolent form of protest and alert everyone around that there's ICE activity going on," said Adelsheim-Marshall. “Everyone is looking for anything they can do to help their community right now.”
She added that her community is being "terrorized by ICE" and said demand for the whistles has risen following an ICE agent's killing of Renee Good.
"ICE is doing far more to hurt our community than immigrants ever have," said Adelsheim-Marshall. "Almost every customer who comes in tells us about encounters they've had with ICE."
Hours after the interview, in which an ABC News correspondent noted that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) referenced the use of whistles to warn about ICE operations last week in a social media post, two ICE agents arrived at Mischief Toy Store and delivered an audit notice to co-owner Dan Marshall, Adelsheim-Marshall's father.
Marshall and Adelsheim-Marshall were given three business days to turn over federal I-9 forms to prove their five Minnesota-born part-time employees were hired legally, as well as payroll records, tax returns, and other documents.
"We feel very strongly that we were targeted based on the content of Abby's interview that day," Marshall told the Minnesota Star Tribune on Tuesday, as the deadline for the audit approached.
Matthew Gertz, a senior fellow at Media Matters for America, agreed and said the DHS audit appeared to be "immediate punishment for speaking out against the regime."
Mark Jacob, an author and Chicago-area journalist added that ICE's targeting of the toy store offered proof that "it's not about making Minnesota 'safe'—it's about making Minnesota subservient."
A bottomless well of vengeance.
[image or embed]
— Renée Graham 🏳️🌈 (@rygraham.bsky.social) January 21, 2026 at 7:45 AM
Last year, the Mischief owners joined a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump's tariffs and Marshall spoke in a TV interview about how the president's trade was causing anxiety among small business owners.
Following the news of the DHS audit, the Adelsheim-Marshall family and their community have not been deterred from coming to the defense of their neighbors—including the toy store itself.
On Saturday, the day after the ABC News interview and the audit delivery, Marshall told the Star Tribune that the store "sold 250 anti-ICE yard signs in the first three hours that we were open."
- 'My US Citizenship Did Not Protect Me': Community Hearing Details ICE Horrors in Minneapolis ›
- Woman Killed by ICE Identified as Protesters Take to Streets in Minneapolis and Beyond ›
- To Threat of Troop Deployment, Minneapolis Mayor Vows City 'Will Not Be Intimidated' ›
- St. Paul Mayor: ICE Car Crash Shows 'Operation Metro Surge Needs to End Immediately' | Common Dreams ›