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We border Patrol active agent in chicago are now done equip with body camerasA development confirmed during a court hearing on Monday hearing Addressing the Trump Administration’s Immigration action,
The initiative follows a judge’s order amid complaints of escalating combat tactics and more than 1,000 arrests.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Sarah Ellis ordered that uniformed agents must activate cameras where they are available during arrests, searches, building searches and when deployed during protests.
Kyle Harvick, deputy incident commander for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, informed the judge that every Border Patrol agent involved in Operation Midway Blitz “now has a body-worn camera”.
He said 201 Border Patrol agents are deployed to the Chicago area, with other federal agencies such as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement also participating in the operation.
The hearing was the latest in a lawsuit by news organizations and community groups that witnessed protests and arrests in the Chicago area. Ellis said earlier this month that agents would have to wear badges, and he banned them from using some riot control techniques against peaceful protesters and journalists.
Then last Thursday, she said she was “a little shocked” after seeing TV images of the street confrontation, in which agents used tear gas and other tactics.
Harwick defended the use of tear gas on protesters in a Chicago neighborhood on October 12, saying that the residents who had gathered would “not allow the agents to leave the scene.”
“The longer we stay on a scene and subjects emerge, the more dangerous the situation becomes,” Harvick said. “And this is a security concern, not only for my brother Border Patrol agents but for the detainee and other people who come out to see what’s going on.”
Government lawyers said Shawn Byers, deputy regional office director for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, will also appear in court.
News media and community groups submitted five pages of proposed topics for the hearing. They covered a wide range of topics, from the number of agents in the Chicago area to questions about training, tactics and justification for widespread immigration strikes. It’s unclear what the judge will be allowed to ask.
The government is furious at any suggestion of wrongdoing.
“The full context is that law enforcement officers in Chicago have been attacked, injured and prevented from enforcing federal law,” U.S. Justice Department lawyer Samuel Holt said in a court filing Friday.
Separately, the President donald trumpThe administration is barred from deploying the National Guard to assist immigration authorities in Illinois. That order expires Thursday unless extended. The administration has also sought permission for deployment from the Supreme Court.