Pritzker’s commission report pushes for local investigations of federal ‘brutality’

By Jim Talamonti | The Center Square
The Center Square

(The Center Square) – Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s Illinois Accountability Commission has released its report on alleged abuses by federal immigration law enforcement officers in Illinois, but it remains unclear if the report will lead to prosecutions.

Commission members joined Pritzker for a news conference in Chicago on Thursday.

The governor said Operation Midway Blitz was a military-style assault on Illinois.

“Our communities and our people were subjected to an unprecedented campaign of harassment, intimidation and brutality,” Pritzker said.

The governor created the commission last October and directed it to document the conduct of federal officers during Operation Midway Blitz, examine the impact of that conduct and consider policy recommendations.

Commission chair Rubén Castillo said the 204-page report released Thursday demonstrates patterns of illegal and violent conduct by federal agents during Operation Midway Blitz.

According to the report’s executive summary, “Operation Midway Blitz agents regularly used force against Illinoisans without justification.”

Castillo said the report would be referred to Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke.

“And it should be investigated. I’m not talking about convictions. That’s up to a jury. That’s up to a judge,” Castillo said.

The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office provided The Center Square with a statement commending the bravery of witnesses who testified before the commission.

“There is no doubt that Operation Midway Blitz has traumatized and harmed our communities,” the statement said.

The CCSAO said it created a protocol to support law enforcement agencies investigating federal immigration officers.

“This critical guidance has been adopted by every locally elected prosecutor in the state and the Illinois Attorney General’s Office,” the statement said.

The agency said, under Illinois law, it can only bring charges after receiving a completed investigation from a law enforcement agency.

“At that point, we review the available evidence and determine whether criminal charges are warranted in state court.”

To date, the CCSAO said it has not received a request from law enforcement to review any investigation related to on-duty conduct of a federal immigration agent.

Pritzker said the report would also be sent to the Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office and police departments in Chicago, Elgin, Evanston and Franklin Park.

State Sen. Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet, held a press conference in Springfield on Thursday with Joe Abraham, whose daughter Katie died in a crash with a drunk driver who was in the country illegally.

Rose, a former prosecutor, said state government should keep the people of Illinois safe.

“We are not safe. The system that Gov. Pritzker has created has made us less safe,” Rose said.

Rose said he filed Senate Bill 4196 to reopen the lines of communication between Illinois law enforcement agencies and their federal partners.