CHICAGO (NewsNation) — A senior Border Patrol official accused of throwing tear gas canisters at protesters in Chicago has been ordered to meet with a federal judge daily to review incidents involving federal officers and agents assigned to Operation Midway Blitz.
Gregory Bovino, who has become the face of the federal enforcement operation that began in early September, is accused of violating a temporary restraining order, under which federal agents were barred from using riot control methods such as tear gas without an imminent threat.
Bovino was ordered to appear before U.S. District Court Judge Sarah Ellis on Tuesday, when he acknowledged that he does not wear a body camera, nor has he undergone the required training to do so.
Bovino’s appearance came after a court filing included a photo of Bovino allegedly throwing what appears to be a tear gas canister toward protesters in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood. A protester filmed the incident, and 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.
Department of Homeland Security officials said Bovino threw the canister after a group of up to 100 protesters ignored agents’ warnings to retreat and threw objects, including rocks and fireworks, at agents. A DHS spokesperson alleged Bonvino was struck in the head with a rock.
Community members said a warning was never given to protesters.
To ensure she and Bovino are “on the same page,” Ellis ordered Bovino to provide her with daily reports in an in-person meeting until a preliminary injunction hearing, scheduled for Nov. 5 Ellis also requested all use-of-force reports and corresponding bodycam footage since Sept. 2, which will remain sealed.
After Bovino’s admission that he neither wears a body camera nor has gone through the training to wear and use one, Ellis gave him a Friday deadline to do so.
Protesters outside Chicago courthouse: ‘Stop terrorizing our neighbors’
Protesters with signs demanding federal officers leave the city lined up outside the Chicago federal courthouse on Tuesday morning, and demonstrators swarmed Bovino as he arrived wearing his full Border Patrol uniform.
Across the street, a group of Chicago police officers gathered, monitoring the protest and drawing honking horns from passing motorists.
“This is disgusting that the Trump admin has declared war on its own people,” said one protester, Zoe, who did not provide her last name. “We are all Chicagoans, and we want him to stop gassing our neighborhoods and stop terrorizing our neighbors and terrorizing Latinos and anyone who has brown skin in this city. It needs to stop.”
One woman, who declined to give her name, told NewsNation she was outside the courthouse to support Bovino and the work Immigration and Customs Enforcement is doing. Holding a sign reading “ICE is Cool” and “Prove me wrong,” she stood outside the courthouse surrounded by anti-ICE demonstrators.
The woman said she has been threatened with physical violence by other protesters outside an ICE facility in the Chicago suburb of Broadview, the site of recent protests. As she explained her support of ICE to NewsNation, others accused her of supporting the kidnapping of innocent people and of federal officers whom they characterized as Nazis.
A larger number of protesters were awaiting Bovino when he departed the federal court building. Escorted by a contingent of Border Patrol agents in full gear, Bovino emerged as demonstrators made their way toward him. Chanting, “ICE go home” and “Shame”, protesters closed in on Bovino, who made his way to the driver’s seat of a Border Patrol vehicle.
Bovino elevated himself by standing on the step into the vehicle and motioned to vehicles behind him to move out as protesters continued to shout at the agents and at Bovino.
Force by federal officers is ‘exemplary’: Gregory Bovino
Bovino has overseen the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement effort in Illinois, known as “Operation Midway Blitz,” which began Sept. 8. In an interview with CBS News on Thursday, Bovino said more than 2,700 arrests have been made during the effort.
In the interview, Bovino defended the use of force by federal officers, calling it “exemplary,” which he defined as “the least amount of force necessary to accomplish the mission.”
Bovino added 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.
Lawsuit seeks to block ICE’s use of tear gas
Attorneys representing journalists, protesters and clergy in the federal lawsuit filed a motion late Monday to block federal immigration officers from using tear gas.
Multiple videos of incidents involving federal agents in various Chicago neighborhoods have included the use of chemical agents, including in three different neighborhoods last week.
Bovino has been ordered to sit for a deposition by attorneys representing the group of plaintiffs. Tuesday’s hearing comes after DHS officials confirmed to NewsNation that ICE officials in more than five major cities are being replaced by senior Border Patrol agents.
ICE officials in Denver, San Diego, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Philadelphia have been relieved of their duties and moved to other jobs within the agency, DHS said.
“While we have no personnel changes to announce at this time, the Trump Administration remains laser-focused on delivering results and removing violent criminal illegal aliens from this country,” said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin.
NewsNation’s Ali Bradley and Mills Hayes contributed to this report.