Judge Orders DHS to Release Hundreds of ICE Detainees in Chicago

The judge said that 615 detained illegal immigrants were not subject to mandatory detention and did not have final removal orders.

People detained earlier in the day are taken to a parking lot before being transferred to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Chicago, Ill., on Oct. 31, 2025. Jamie Kelter Davis/Getty Images

A federal judge ruled Nov. 13 that hundreds of illegal immigrants held by ICE in Illinois may be released on bond and ordered the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to assess whether they pose any safety risk to the public.

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Cummings of the Northern District of Illinois issued the ruling in response to a lawsuit filed by the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Illinois on behalf of people arrested during “Operation Midway Blitz,” a federal immigration enforcement operation targeting illegal immigrants.

More than 3,000 illegal immigrants were arrested between June and October, including those arrested in connection with the operation, according to court documents.

Among them, 615 individuals were not subject to mandatory detention and did not have final removal orders, the ruling states. DHS had argued that all of those detained in the operation fell under mandatory detention.

The judge rejected this argument and ordered DHS to release, by Nov. 21, those individuals from the group of 615 who are still in custody and not deemed a “high public safety risk,” on a $1,500 bond and into ICE’s Alternatives to Detention program.

Their deportation proceedings would be put on hold until the next business day following their release, Jeffrey said.

“Plaintiffs assert that many class members are choosing to voluntarily depart to escape the unsafe and unsanitary conditions that they have been subjected to while in ICE operation,” Jeffrey said in his ruling.

The judge also ordered the department to immediately release 13 individuals who were arrested by ICE in violation of the consent decree during the operation.

Jeffrey noted that DHS must also provide the plaintiffs’ counsel with the names and threat levels of all individuals arrested since June, no later than Nov. 19, according to the ruling.

Mark Fleming, associate director of litigation at NIJC, praised the ruling, saying the judge’s decision will ensure detained illegal immigrants have a fair chance at due process.

“Communities throughout the Chicago area have been traumatized by ICE and other federal agents’ chaotic and violent actions in our neighborhoods in recent months, and potentially hundreds of families already have been permanently separated as a result of unlawful arrests and rapid deportations without due process,” Fleming said in a statement.

The Trump administration has said that Operation Midway Blitz targeted the “worst of the worst” illegal immigrants with criminal records, including sexual and gang-related offenses.

In a statement provided to media outlets, DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin condemned the ruling.

“At every turn, activist judges, sanctuary politicians, and violent rioters have actively tried to prevent our law enforcement officers from arresting and removing the worst of the worst,” McLaughlin said. “Now an activist judge is putting the lives of Americans directly at risk by ordering 615 illegal aliens be released into the community.”

Illinois State Police stand guard as people protest in front of the Broadview ICE Detention Facility in Broadview, Ill., on Oct. 11, 2025. NTD

Operation Midway Blitz sparked protests outside an ICE facility in Chicago, where protesters clashed with federal agents and rammed vehicles of federal agents.

President Donald Trump authorized the deployment of National Guard troops to Illinois to protect federal assets.

A federal judge blocked the deployment on Oct. 9, and the administration has filed a request with the Supreme Court, which is weighing whether to pause the judge’s injunction.