Immigration enforcement on North Side leads to tense confrontations, soft lockdowns at schools
Video shows feds breaking window, detaining man in West Town; Laugh Factory manager detained; DHS responds to tear gas allegations
CHICAGO (WLS) -- Videos showed federal agents detaining people as immigration enforcement activity was reported across Chicago on Friday.
At several North Side locations, federal agents making arrests were met by community members, and at least one encounter ended in a cloud of tear gas.
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Footage from West Town Friday morning showed a federal agent breaking the driver's side window of a car and detaining a man inside near West Superior Street and North Paulina Street.
ABC7 blurred his face because we do not know if he has been charged with any crimes.
Neighborhood residents confronted agents, shouting at them and blowing their whistles to alert the community as they detained the man, who was waiting for his pregnant wife outside of a community health center. Local elected officials and the community center say the man is in the country legally on a work permit and had a court date with immigration.
SEE ALSO | Chicago federal intervention: Tracking surge in immigration enforcement operations | Live updates
Later, a mid-day confrontation pitted Lakeview neighbors and protesters against masked federal agents. The face-to-face encounter ended with volleys of tear gas sending the residential block spiraling into chaos.
Courtney Conway was among dozens of residents who confronted agents near Lakewood and Henderson after a construction worker at a home was arrested.
"My eyes were burning. It did not feel great. They still burn a bit today," Conway said. "There were some neighbors bringing out water for us to flush out our eyes."
Doorbell camera video showed agents rolling up and workers, who'd been having lunch, running for cover. One closed and braced against a gate as agents tried to push through. Another was helped through a window to elude agents.
The stepped up ICE activity on the North Side disrupting the school day at Burr Elementary and other schools as multiple arrests played out on nearby streets.
CPS parents and 32nd Ward Alderman Scott Waguespack confirmed a handful of schools in the Bucktown-Wicker Park area were placed on soft lockdown. That meant no outdoor recess, in response to ICE arrests in the neighborhood.
"The kids aren't playing outside because there's been a huge amount of ICE presence in the neighborhood, just driving up and down the streets, just kind of terrorizing the neighborhood," CPS parent Nicole Van Haperbeke said. "Why? It's a peaceful, beautiful Friday."
SEE ALSO | US House subcommittee hosts 'shadow hearing' in Chicago on immigration enforcement tactics
ABC7 obtained multiple videos from Bucktown-Wicker Park residents showing arrests in and around the neighborhood. At least one showed a gardener who a resident says was hired to plant a tree in her backyard.
"I just asked them not to arrest him," Bucktown resident Donna Kirchman said. "I said, 'Please leave him alone.' And they didn't. I believe they took his phone, and then they took him."
Heavily armed agents also arrested a man sitting in a vehicle, who witnesses said works at a nearby car dealership.
"It's terrifying, and we knew that they were going to come to Bucktown," resident Laura Dufour said. "They've been all over the city."
Those agents were later seen driving around vehicles that had stopped and clipping a woman. Alderman Waguespack says he's been inundated with messages and witnessed first-hand what he claimed were ICE agents driving dangerously in the neighborhood.
"We saw them backing up into intersections where we've got daycare children walking across the street," Waguespack said. "You've got mothers with strollers. You've got a fun run right up here at St. Mary's, and they're driving without stopping at stop signs, blowing through alleys."
In light of the school lockdowns Mayor Brandon Johnson is urging Governor JB Pritzker to allow for a remote option for CPS students. That's something the state has to sign off on, but the governor says he's opposed to that idea because of the impact it could have on the students' education.
SEE ALSO | Some Chicago Board of Education members call for CPS remote learning amid immigration operations
Also, Laugh Factory posted on social media on Friday, saying the Lakeview comedy club's night manager was detained by "masked federal agents outside of the club." The business posted footage of the incident to its Facebook account.
Nathan Griffin said he was charged.
Chicago police said officers responded to a report of a battery in the area of Belmont Avenue and Broadway just before 9:20 a.m.
Responding officers saw federal agents and two other individuals in a physical altercation, and a crowd had gathered in the area, police said.
Police said officers worked to deescalate and conduct crowd control. CPD did not make any arrests and left the scene once the area was cleared.
No further information about the incident from federal authorities was available.
Multiple alderpersons on the North Side issued alerts about more reported ICE activity on Friday.
Ald. Daniel La Spata, who represents the 1st Ward, said on Friday morning, there have been "numerous confirmed sightings of ICE" throughout the West Town community area, including neighborhoods surrounding Ukrainian Village, Wicker Park, and the Humboldt Park border.
Ald. Timmy Knusden, who represents the 43rd Ward, said community members on Friday have "reported ICE sightings and suspected enforcement activity at the following locations:
- Cleveland/Belden
- 2600 N Racine
- 440 W Belden
- Reports of 2 unmarked SUVs driving north on Halsted with masked drivers
- Lincoln/Racine/Diversey
- Racine/Drummond
- Lill/Seminary
- Wrightwood/Racine"
Wicker Park's A.N. Pritzker School also said it was on soft lockdown Friday, and all after-school programs, with the exception of Wicker Park Kids and Apollo, were canceled.
Tear gas was thrown at Henderson and Lakewood, in a community that had so far has avoided contact with ICE agents.
"The tear gas was deployed by ICE without warning and without my neighbors hear from doing anything to provoke that reaction no one was interfering with them they were just exercising the first amendment rights," 44th Ward Ald. Bennett Lawson said. "This is very disturbing."
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson issued a statement on Saturday, saying, "Border Patrol agents were swarmed by agitators during enforcement operations near Lakewood Avenue in Chicago. The agitators obstructed federal law enforcement and ignored multiple warnings to disperse and continued to impede operations, including trying to deflate a vehicles tire. Agents deployed crowd control measures to disperse the crowd and agitators began throwing objects at them. To protect themselves, the Border Patrol deployed additional to safely clear the area.
Our officers are facing a surge in assaults against them as they put their lives on the line to arrest murderers, rapists, and gang members. Secretary Noem's message to the rioters is clear: you will not stop us or slow us down. CBP and our federal law enforcement partners will continue to enforce the law. And if you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
Border Patrol agents repeated multiple warnings to back up and that chemical agents would be deployed if warnings were ignored. Riot control measures were deployed, including by Chief Bovino, and arrests were made. Agents properly used their training. The use of chemical munitions was conducted in full accordance with CBP policy and was necessary to ensure the safety of both law enforcement and the public."
Roaming bands of agents appeared to be targeting communities Friday where immigrants might be working.
"No one gains, people already hurt and you kinda get to see that in real time," neighborhood resident Donny Donoghue said.
Earlier, protesters gathered outside the ICE processing facility in Broadview once again, as they have done every Friday now for several weeks.
Friday's demonstration has remained fairly contained to one corner as protesters keep within the safety zone, speaking out against the Trump's administration's operation "Midway Blitz" and the recent immigration crackdown in the Chicagoland area.
"I believe that we are creating huge wounds, not only for the people who are being detained, but for the ICE officers who are doing these horrible things. I feel terrible for everybody," said Mary Kelly, who lives in Oak Park.
Immigration operations are also having an impact on the Asian community.
The Chinese American Service League shared a video of federal agents detaining a man outside his home in Bridgeport on Thursday.
CASL claims the father of two was not doing anything illegal. Witnesses say the agents did not present a warrant.
DHS says gang member tried to ram agents with car, defends apparent tear gas use on protesters
Meanwhile, ABC7 is getting more information from the DHS about recent violent run-ins with federal agents over the past few days.
DHS says Wednesday was one of their most violent days on the job. At 26th and Ogden in Cicero, DHS claims a Latin Kings gang member tried to ram agents with his vehicle.
Six people were arrested that day for impeding operations, and three undocumented immigrants were placed into custody.
And there were more tense moments Thursday at the Little Village Discount Mall during an anti-ICE rally.
Attorneys accused federal agents of violating a court order, which does not allow them to use riot control weapons unless facing an imminent threat and requires them to issue warnings first before deploying tear gas.
A federal complaint is now taking aim at the man who led the charge. An image of Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino appears to show him throw tear gas "without justification," according to the complaint.
"Federal agents started acting aggressive, pushing protesters away... Again, it was all peaceful protesters," said protester Kristian Armendariz.
However, DHS says the group of about 75-100 people began firing commercial artillery shell fireworks at agents and throwing rocks, adding that Bovino was hit in the head.
According to DHS, agents repeated multiple warnings to the crowd to back up, informing them that chemical agents would be deployed. The department stood by their agents' actions, saying, "Agents properly used their training. The use of chemical munitions was conducted in full accordance with CBP policy and was necessary to ensure the safety of both law enforcement and the public."
Bovino was set to appear in court on Nov. 5 to give a two-hour testimony, but now a federal judge has ordered more than double the time, five hours, to question Bovino after the incidents.
Later Friday, Judge Sara Ellis also ordered Bovino to testify in-person on Tuesday during a status hearing.
