BROADVIEW, Ill. (NewsNation) — Nearly two dozen protesters were arrested and four police officers were injured Friday near a Chicago-area immigration facility that has remained at the epicenter of clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement in recent months.
The Cook County Sheriff’s Office reported that at least 21 people were taken into custody, including members of the faith community, in suburban Broadview, which has been the site of weekly demonstrations near the Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing center. Those arrested face charges of obstruction and disturbing the peace, officials said.
The law enforcement officers were hurt when nearly 50 protesters breached a concrete barrier dividing the designated protest zone and into the street that leads directly to the ICE processing center. The officers, three of whom were taken to a local hospital for treatment, were injured while trying to direct protesters back to the designated area, the sheriff’s department said.
Protesters, including clergy, have been gathering at the site on Friday mornings for months, demonstrating against the presence of federal immigration officers and agents during the large-scale federal immigration enforcement operation dubbed “Operation Midway Blitz”, which began in early September.
Friday’s protest was peaceful until dozens of protesters crossed over the barrier and were met by officers, including those from Cook County and the village of Broadview. Illinois state troopers arrived at the scene in riot gear as protesters formed a human chain to keep officers from getting to those who entered the street.
Earlier this week, a federal judge in Chicago issued a ruling in a lawsuit filed over the conditions at the Broadview facility. The site has been used as the main processing center for the immigration enforcement effort, which brought Border Patrol chief Gregory Bovino and more than 200 federal agents and officers to the Chicago area.
The judge toured the ICE facility along with attorneys amid allegations by immigration advocates that detainees do not have access to working showers or adequate areas to sleep. The Broadview facility has long been considered controversial over the amount of time that detainees are kept there before being moved to an out-of-state detention center.
Bovino left Chicago earlier this week and is being deployed with a large contingent of federal agents to Charlotte, North Carolina. However, before leaving, Bovino said that the ongoing operation in Chicago would not end, but instead would ramp up.
In response to a separate lawsuit, another Chicago U.S. District Judge ordered the release of more than 600 immigrants detained by federal officials in June. Attorneys are challenging the arrests, saying they violate a 2022 consent decree that keeps immigrants from being arrested without judicial warrants or probable cause.
Judge Jeffrey Cummings ordered this week that 13 migrants being detained must be released by Friday after the Justice Department conceded that those 13 do not pose a security risk. The Chicago Tribune reported Friday that of the more than 600 migrants on the list, just 16 (or 2.6%) have criminal convictions that represent a high security risk.
The Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights said Friday that migrants had been released from federal detention in Texas and that others in Indiana and Michigan were in the processed of being freed.
Asked about Friday’s protests, White House Border Czar Tom Homan said that demonstrators have the right to be there.
“Have at it, but don’t cross the line,” Homan told reporters outside the White House.
Homan said that the majority of those being held in ICE custody are convicted criminals. He said that many of those who do not have prior criminal convictions or pending charges pose national security threats despite not having a criminal past. Homan continued to blame leaders in so-called “sanctuary cities” like Chicago for not cooperating with federal immigration agencies.
As of Sept. 21, 28% of the nearly 60,000 people in ICE custody have criminal convictions, while 25% have pending criminal charges, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse. Another 46% have are facing immigration-related offenses.
Friday’s protest took place after six people, including a progressive candidate running for Congress in Illinois, pleaded not guilty to federal charges stemming from demonstrations at the Broadview facility.