Court filings paint mixed picture of ICE's Minnesota drawdown

It's been two weeks since the Trump administration declared an end to "Operation Metro Surge," but new federal court filings show the number of ICE agents in Minnesota remains far above pre-surge levels.

The big picture: National attention has shifted away from the story of the Trump administration blitz that sent some 3,000 federal agents — including ICE and Border Patrol personnel — to Minnesota, killed two U.S. citizens and led to hundreds of arrests.

• But on the ground, it's not clear the surge has ended, with some activists and officials saying aggressive tactics continue outside the public spotlight.

The latest: According to a sworn statement filed in U.S. District Court in Minnesota by ICE's St. Paul Field Office Director Samuel Olson, roughly 400 federal agents remain assigned to Minnesota and could stay through March.

• That's still more than twice the 190 ICE officers that typically cover all of Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa and the Dakotas.
• A separate court filing submitted earlier this week shows Border Patrol personnel assigned to the operation were fully demobilized by Monday.

Zoom in: Democratic U.S. Rep Angie Craig told the Minnesota Reformer last week that ICE agents have been averaging around 20 arrests per day, with most detainees now being quickly transferred to county jails.

One possible sign the surge is receding: The number of habeas corpus challenges in federal immigration cases dropped sharply in the second half of February, according to an Axios analysis of filings in the court monitoring website Courtlistener.

Reality check: The decline in these wrongful detention claims in Minnesota's federal courts doesn't necessarily prove ICE is arresting fewer people.

• Immigration attorneys told Fox9 it could mean ICE is conducting more targeted enforcement — or is more efficiently moving arrested immigrants to detention centers outside the state, rendering their Minnesota cases moot.

The other side: While there are some signs that ICE has slowed its pace in Minneapolis and St. Paul, some observer groups believe enforcement activity has ticked up in the suburbs, Sahan Journal reported.

• "They're still very active in Shakopee," DFL state Rep. Brad Tabke told Axios. "They are being equally as aggressive as they have been in the past," saying he's heard reports of agents continuing to use disguises during enforcement actions.

What we're watching: Whether public school students who chose to attend classes virtually return to campus.

• While some districts like St. Paul have seen a wave of students returning to classrooms, Fridley's superintendent told KARE11 that many of her families do not feel "safe enough" to return.

Axios' Torey Van Oot contributed reporting.