CHICAGO – A federal judge in the Northern District of Illinois ordered on Oct. 16 that immigration enforcement agents in the area will have to begin using body-worn cameras, according to local reports.

U.S. District Judge Sara L. Ellis gave the order in federal court in downtown Chicago following reports that immigration agents had clashes with residents on the city’s Southeast Side that ended with agents deploying tear gas and other chemical weapons. Ellis' decision comes after she issued a temporary restraining order on Oct. 9 limiting how immigration agents used non-lethal weapons on civilians.

"I am profoundly concerned about what has been happening over the last week, since I entered this order," Ellis said, according to reporting by the Chicago Sun-Times. "I live in Chicago, if folks haven't noticed. And I'm not blind. … I tend to get news."

The decision out of federal court comes amid President Donald Trump’s Operation Midway Blitz, a crackdown on immigration enforcement in the Chicago area that the administration says is aimed at catching "the worst of the worst" criminal immigrants.

Critics say innocent people are targeted and that Homeland Security’s aggressive tactics have upended life for many people in the region.

Ellis’ order was aimed at bringing down the temperature by ensuring the immigration agents warn protesters ahead of deploying chemical weapons. However the scene that played out on the city’s Southeast Side left her with "serious concerns."

Photos of the scene taken by the Sun-Times and shared by the office of Gov. JB Pritzker show federal agents in fatigues pointing non-lethal weapons directly into the faces of unarmed young people protesting enforcement actions.

Homeland Security Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin has shrugged off the optics of the photos."This is a U.S. citizen who, along with his cousin, was arrested for assaulting and throwing rocks at law enforcement. That is a 40mm launcher that fires beanbags and rubber projectiles," McLaughlin said in a post on X. "But keep making this thug your poster child."

According to local reports, Ellis ordered a top Homeland Security official to appear in court on Oct. 20 to address the issue.

Homeland Security officials said Ellis' order was "not constitutional" and said some Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents already used body-worn cameras.

"Body-worn cameras are currently in use in ICE areas of responsibility where the agency has issued cameras and provided appropriate training," the statement said. "In these areas, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement policy mandates the use of body-worn cameras during pre-planned enforcement actions by ICE law enforcement officers in support of the agency's mission, with limited exceptions for specific investigative operations. Agency-wide expansion of body-worn cameras is dependent on the availability of appropriated funding resources."

An agency spokesperson did not respond to questions about whether agents in the Chicago area were using body-worn cameras.

What else does the judge’s order make ICE do?

Ellis’ order on Oct. 16 amends an order she made on Oct. 9 in response to a lawsuit brought by a group of clergy, protesters and journalists saying federal agents unreasonably deployed chemical weapons on people outside an immigration enforcement facility in the suburbs.

The immigration enforcement facility has become a hotbed of protests where agents have deployed around $100,000 worth of non-lethal weapons to stop "rioters" from hindering immigration enforcement, Trump administration attorney Eric Hamilton said in an Oct. 9 hearing regarding the deployment of National Guard troops to the region.

Clergy, protesters and journalists filing suit said agents fired without provocation. Among moments cited was a high-profile video of a federal agent shooting local pastor Rev. David Black in the head with a pepper ball.

Ellis in court filings said the chemical weapons use likely "constituted excessive force" and referred to the attack on Black as an "unprovoked use of force."

The original court order compels agents to wear identification, a significant step in the city where many people have chafed against masked men detaining people; and to give two warnings before using chemical weapons.

Ellis’ ruling applies throughout the Chicago area where immigration enforcement agents have used tear gas "without any warning or apparent justification."

"The TRO essentially directs agents and officers to follow the training they have already received on crowd control, as well as what the Constitution demands of them," Ellis wrote.

This story has been updated to add new information.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chicago judge orders ICE to wear body cams after clash with protesters, reports say

Reporting by Michael Loria, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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