Immigration Officers in Chicago Required to Wear Body Cameras, Says Federal Judge

Federal law enforcement officers conducting removals of illegal immigrants in the Chicago area will be required to wear body cameras during those operations, a U.S. District Judge ordered on Oct. 16.

The order was issued as part of an ongoing civil action against the Department of Homeland Security, brought by protesters and journalists who have followed federal officers in the Chicago area to either protest against their immigration actions or report on them, respectively. Previously, on Oct. 9, the presiding judge in the case issued a Temporary Restraining Order that enjoined the officers from issuing dispersal orders, using riot control equipment, or using force against protesters who are not posing a physical threat to the officers.

Judge Sara L. Ellis of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois issued the order verbally. Later, the government’s counsel, Sean Skedzielewski, told Ellis that the government does not possess enough body cameras to mount on agents and officers, to which she said that another hearing would occur on Oct. 20 to discuss the matter.

“I would not be expecting agents to wear body-worn cameras they do not have,” Ellis said during the hearing.

Chicago has become a focal point for immigration law enforcement operations by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other federal agencies designated to perform the task. The city is home to many activists who have opposed the detention and removal of illegal immigrants residing there.

Several public protests against ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations officers in Chicago have occurred, with protesters following the agents, attempting to block their vehicles, and hurling insults at them. Videos of confrontations, where federal law enforcement has detained or arrested some protesters, have been widely circulated on social media.

President Donald Trump, who has ordered the removal effort, has criticized the protests and sought to deploy National Guard forces in and around the Chicago area to protect federal officers as they carry out their enforcement operations. Trump issued a presidential order to federalize the Illinois National Guard, which has been challenged in court and upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, though they have not yet been deployed.

Some Republican-led states, such as Texas, have willingly sent their National Guard troops there.

“I fully authorized the President to call up 400 members of the Texas National Guard to ensure safety for federal officials [in Chicago],” wrote Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Oct. 5 on X

“You can either fully enforce protection for federal employees or get out of the way and let Texas Guard do it,” he added, directing that comment to Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker.

Pritzker, and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, have been the leading voices criticizing Trump’s actions in the city.

“ICE is recklessly throwing tear gas into our neighborhoods and busy streets, including near children at school and CPD officers,” Pritzker wrote on X in reference to one of the issues in the ongoing case overseen by Judge Ellis. “The Trump Administration must stop their deployment of dangerous chemical weapons into the air of peaceful American communities.”

“We will continue to use all of the tools at our disposal to end the Trump administration’s war on Chicago,” Johnson wrote on X.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.