CHICAGO (AP) — A federal judge will deliberate on Wednesday regarding serious allegations that immigration agents in the Chicago area have used excessive force during recent encounters with local residents. The discussions come in light of heightened tensions and numerous complaints highlighted in recent court filings.
The preliminary hearing stems from a lawsuit initiated by journalists and protesters, asserting that federal agents used excessive measures, including tear gas, at protests. U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis has previously mandated that agents wear identification badges and refrained from deploying certain riot-control tactics against peaceful protesters. After facing continued noncompliance from federal officials, Judge Ellis has also instituted a requirement for agents to wear body cameras.
This hearing follows an unusual public session last week, where Judge Ellis engaged with senior Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino, requesting regular briefings regarding the federal immigration operations in the Chicago area—a demand promptly overturned by an appeals court.
Bovino is expected to feature prominently in the upcoming hearing as part of a video deposition played before the court. The hearing is also anticipated to include testimonies from a pastor affected by a chemical agent during a prayer demonstration and others who experienced violence during protests outside an immigration facility.
Recent records indicate that Bovino acknowledged the use of tear gas in the predominantly Mexican-American neighborhood of Little Village and indicated awareness of tensions during protests. On the procedural front, another federal judge, Robert Gettleman, is also expected to address severe allegations regarding conditions in Chicago's immigration detention facility, recently described as “unnecessarily cruel.”
The preliminary hearing stems from a lawsuit initiated by journalists and protesters, asserting that federal agents used excessive measures, including tear gas, at protests. U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis has previously mandated that agents wear identification badges and refrained from deploying certain riot-control tactics against peaceful protesters. After facing continued noncompliance from federal officials, Judge Ellis has also instituted a requirement for agents to wear body cameras.
This hearing follows an unusual public session last week, where Judge Ellis engaged with senior Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino, requesting regular briefings regarding the federal immigration operations in the Chicago area—a demand promptly overturned by an appeals court.
Bovino is expected to feature prominently in the upcoming hearing as part of a video deposition played before the court. The hearing is also anticipated to include testimonies from a pastor affected by a chemical agent during a prayer demonstration and others who experienced violence during protests outside an immigration facility.
Recent records indicate that Bovino acknowledged the use of tear gas in the predominantly Mexican-American neighborhood of Little Village and indicated awareness of tensions during protests. On the procedural front, another federal judge, Robert Gettleman, is also expected to address severe allegations regarding conditions in Chicago's immigration detention facility, recently described as “unnecessarily cruel.”
