A federal judge's order designed to protect the constitutional rights of nonthreatening protestors and the press in the Chicago area was paused on Wednesday after the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals granted an emergency stay. Although federal immigration authorities have wound down operations in the Windy City for now, the decision means that the court will have less oversight over any agents who remain and use riot control weapons on opponents of President Donald Trump's mass deportation campaign.
United States District Judge Sara L. Ellis issued a preliminary injunction on November 6 after the Trump administration and federal agents were sued for engaging in "extreme brutality" to "silence the press and civilians" protesting "Operation Midway Blitz," the ongoing immigration operation in Chicago. After hearing evidence of agents deploying riot control weapons and chemical irritants against protestors and bystanders without warning, Ellis stated in court that the evidence so far "shocks the conscience," and that the Justice Department's arguments to defend against the accusations "lack credibility," according to the Chicago Sun-Times. Ellis also highlighted an incident in which Gregory Bovino, the Border Patrol chief leading immigration operations in Chicago until recently, was captured on video throwing a tear gas canister into a crowd. Bovino later admitted to lying about a rock hitting him in the head before deploying the tear gas.
