Some legal experts are weighing in.
As people took advantage of yet another beautiful September day, Millennium Park and other popular downtown spots were back to normal on Monday following Sunday's surge of federal immigration agents on land and water.
"My constituents recognize this as a farce and a public relation stunt. It doesn't make us safer," said 2nd Ward Ald. Brian Hopkins.
Downtown Chicago City Council members say Sunday's show of force in areas such as Millennium Park, Michigan Avenue, and the Gold Coast was nothing more than intimidation. But immigration attorneys say it was more than that. Some people were stopped and arrested.
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"We are looking very closely at that video and gathering more evidence to potentially bring follow on litigation around this issue of the stop piece of it," said Mark Fleming with the National Immigration Justice Center.
The National Immigration Justice Center has already taken legal action against the Trump administration for unlawful arrests, including a recent Elgin raid where a U.S. citizen was detained. As for random stops, law experts say the U.S. Supreme Court allows federal agents to stop and question someone only if they have a "reasonable suspicion" that person in the U.S. without authorization.
"I would argue that it's not reasonable even to stop somebody for questioning solely based on their ethnicity and the language they speak," said Northwestern Pritzker School of Law Prof. Paul Gowder.
Northwestern Pritzker School of Law Professor Paul Gowder says racial profiling is not a reasonable suspicion in a city like Chicago, with a large Latino population. In an emergency ruling, the Supreme Court did allow profiling to continue on California. However, experts say the ruling only applies to that specific case. In the meantime, lawyers say if you are stopped, stay silent.
"You say that 'I do not want to answer any of your questions unless I can speak to an attorney,' and 'Am I permitted to leave?'" Fleming said.
The National Immigrant Justice Center is urging people to video tape and document any interaction with federal immigration agents. Attorneys say documentation is key in their fight to uphold the Fourth Amendment.