CHICAGO (NewsNation) — A senior Border Patrol official is accused of violating a federal judge’s temporary restraining order after he was allegedly seen on footage throwing tear gas canisters during an immigration enforcement operation in Chicago on Thursday.
A court filing includes a photo of Gregory Bovino throwing what appears to be a tear gas canister toward protesters during an enforcement operation in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood. The incident was being filmed by a protester, and in the filing, attorneys allege Bovino appears to throw either one or two tear gas canisters over the heads of federal agents in front of him and in the direction of a crowd of demonstrators.
Thursday’s clash between protesters and federal officers marked the second straight day that the Little Village neighborhood had witnessed encounters between demonstrators and federal officers.
On Friday, Assistant Department of Homeland Security Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement to NewsNation that Border Patrol agents were on an enforcement operation in Little Village when agents were boxed in by a large truck and encountered a group of between 75-100 protesters.
McLaughlin said the protesters allegedly shot at agents with commercial artillery shell fireworks and “attacked” a transport van carrying detainees arrested by agents. McLaughlin said protesters became more hostile and began throwing rocks and other objects, one of which hit Bovino in the head.
She said that multiple warnings were given for protesters to back up and said that chemical agents would be deployed if warnings were ignored.
“Riot control measures were deployed, including by Chief Bovino, and arrests were made,” McLaughlin said. “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.”
The filing said that the alleged actions violate multiple sections of an order that was issued by Judge Sara Ellis earlier this month. This week, two officials from Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement testified in federal court, asked by Ellis to explain the use of force by federal agents and officers. The plaintiffs alleged agents had violated the terms of the restraining order.
On Friday, Ellis set a status hearing on the matter for Tuesday morning and ordered that Bovino appear in person.
Earlier this week, Ellis sided with the plaintiffs in seeking Bovino and a top ICE agent to be deposed at a later date for up to two hours each. Bovino, along with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, is among the defendants named in a federal lawsuit brought by several Chicago-area journalism organizations, protesters and clergy members.
Bovino has overseen Operation Midway Blitz, which began Sept. 7. In an interview with CBS News on Thursday, Bovino said that more than 2,700 arrests have been made during the ongoing federal Chicago enforcement effort.
In the interview, Bovino defended the use of force by federal officers, calling it “exempliary”, which he defined as “the least amount of force necessary to accomplish the mission.” Bovino said that, to his knowledge, no federal agents or officers are under investigation for, or have been disciplined, for their use of force against protesters or others who have engaged with federal officers during the operation.
Ellis set Nov. 5 as the date for a hearing in which an injunction will be sought to make the temporary restraining order against federal officers and officials permanent.