CHICAGO, IL — A coalition of journalists, protesters and faith leaders moved Tuesday to dismiss their federal lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement tactics in the Chicago area, saying the operation at the center of the case — “Operation Midway Blitz” — has largely ended. The filing notes that U.S. Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino, who oversaw the operation, left Illinois for North Carolina last month, and that large-scale sweeps have ceased.
The plaintiffs originally filed suit alleging that federal agents used excessive force, set up checkpoints, and conducted sweeping arrests without proper justification. In a 223-page ruling last month, U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis granted a preliminary injunction restricting the use of force by immigration officers, finding that agents launched tear gas without warning, fired rubber rounds at reporters, and tackled demonstrators in ways that violated constitutional protections.
While the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily paused the injunction, calling it “overbroad,” the panel also signaled it might support a narrower version. Arguments were scheduled for later this month. Plaintiffs’ attorneys did not say whether the appeals court’s posture factored into their decision to dismiss the case.
Since September, federal agents have made more than 3,000 arrests across Chicago and its suburbs. DHS has defended the operation, saying officers were targeting criminals and faced hostile crowds. Advocates argue the lawsuit and Judge Ellis’s findings brought needed transparency to the operation’s tactics.
The dismissal ends one of the most detailed legal challenges to federal immigration enforcement in the region, though sporadic arrests by other agencies continue.
Sources:
Discover more from News Facts Network
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
