The plaintiffs in a landmark injunction case limiting the use of force by immigration agents during Operation Midway Blitz are expected to formally dismiss their lawsuit on Thursday, a day after agents shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis and as federal officials have vowed to return to Chicago for more large-scale deportation efforts.
The case brought by the Chicago Headline Club and other media groups led to a sweeping preliminary injunction by U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis in November limiting the use of tear gas and other chemical munitions against the media and protesters and also requiring agents to wear body cameras and clear identification.
The plaintiffs moved to drop the suit in December, however, following ominous signs from the 7th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, which called Ellis’ order overbroad and a potential infringement on the separation of powers.
In the request, the plaintiffs claimed victory, saying Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino and his surge of agents left town soon after Ellis’ injunction was entered on Nov. 8 and that there had been no reports of any unconstitutional behavior by agents in nearly a month.
But an attorney for the Trump administration told Ellis in court last month that, contrary to media reports, Operation Midway Blitz has not ended and that the administration of President Donald Trump continues to carry out “lawful” immigration enforcement — though she declined to say when or if another surge in Border Patrol agents would hit the city.
Department of Justice attorney Elizabeth Hedges also claimed the dismissal of the lawsuit would bar journalists and protesters from bringing similar claims of constitutional violations in the future — an argument that was immediately called out by Ellis and plaintiffs’ attorneys as a misstatement of the law.
“While it was the government’s position that no agent did anything illegal or unconstitutional, having watched the videos, and having read the reports, and having listened to the witnesses, I strongly disagree,” Ellis said.
Because the lawsuit involved a certified class of plaintiffs, Ellis set a deadline of Thursday for any class members to object to it. None have apparently come forward, and the suit is now expected to officially be dismissed.
Lawyers for the Tribune and other medial outlets, meanwhile, are still fighting for the release of other evidence that was submitted to the judge for consideration in the case, including use-of-force reports and more footage of incidents around the city.
The media lawyers also are seeking to unseal a transcript of testimony given in October by Department of Justice attorney Sean Skedzielewski, which was done in a closed courtroom after the government claimed there were national security concerns.
The dismissal will end a case that came to symbolize the havoc Midway Blitz caused in Chicago and shed light on how the operation was carried out, through sworn depositions by Bovino and other leaders as well as the release of body-camera footage showing agents deploying tear gas, pointing guns from passing cars and tackling civilians on the street.
Ellis had tentatively set a hearing on permanent injunction for March.
The 7th Circuit later granted an emergency stay of Ellis’ injunctive relief pending appeal, a process that will also be shelved once the dismissal is approved.
Since then, Bovino and a contingent of Border Patrol agents have already returned once to Chicago, in the form of a seemingly made-for-television jaunt shortly before Christmas. Agents made several arrests in supermarket parking lots and tamale stands while goading angry residents who confronted them and threatening to unleash tear gas.
As recently as Dec. 30, Bovino posted on social media: “If you think we’re done with Chicago, you’d better check yourself before you wreck yourself.”
On Wednesday, meanwhile, Bovino was spotted in Minneapolis where more than 1,000 immigration agents were carrying out an enforcement action there.
That operation immediately sparked controversy after an ICE agent shot and killed a woman who was apparently trying to record them on a residential street. Federal officials claimed the shooting was an act of self-defense after the woman tried to run agents over, but the city’s mayor described as “reckless” and unnecessary.
jmeisner@chicagotribune.com