Crime & Law
CPD Must Stop Helping Federal Agents ‘Terrorize’ Chicagoans, Dozens Tell Police Oversight Board
Video: WTTW News senior reporter Heather Cherone appears on “Chicago Tonight” at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 8, 2026, ahead of the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability meeting at Thalia Hall.
Chicago Police Department officials must stop helping federal agents carrying out aggressive immigration raids across the city, dozens of Chicagoans told the police oversight board Thursday evening.
The special meeting of the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability at Thalia Hall in Pilsen came less than 48 hours after a federal agent shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Nicole Gold in Minneapolis, heightening tensions over the aggressive immigration raids launched by President Donald Trump to carry out the largest mass deportation effort in U.S. history.
Chicago police officers have faced pointed questions from residents and elected officials for more than six months about their actions during a series of increasingly aggressive immigration enforcement actions. After efforts to probe officers’ conduct faltered, more than 2,000 Chicagoans signed a petition demanding that the commission, better known as the CCPSA, hold Thursday’s public hearing, which could be the first step toward adopting new rules for CPD.
City officials said in June that it was unclear which agency had the authority to probe whether CPD officers had complied with the Welcoming City ordinance, and there is no public evidence any probe of their conduct had taken place.
No members of CPD command staff attended Thursday’s session, although dozens of officers patrolled outside during a driving rain, with officers and a van typically used to transport those detained during a mass arrest stationed near Thalia Hall.
A CPD spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment from WTTW News about the decision to assign additional officers to the location of the meeting where dozens of Chicagoans bluntly accused officers of collaborating with federal agents in violation of city ordinance.
The capacity crowd quickly grew angry at the commissioners, accusing them of refusing to hold a public hearing on CPD’s interactions.
Several commissioners used their opening remarks to temper expectations that they could take immediate action, prompting the crowd to erupt in jeers and chant “shame!” The commission has the power to set policy for CPD.
Commissioner Anthony Driver Jr., who is running to represent Illinois’ 7th District in the U.S. House of Representatives, said the death of Good and the shooting of two others in Portland on Thursday by federal agents made him “feel helpless.”
Several politicians running in the March primary election spoke during the meeting, and vowed to stand with residents when agents return to Chicago.
Department of Homeland Security officials plan to pause operations in Chicago to send additional agents to Minnesota, the New York Times reported Thursday.
Several speakers called on CPD to arrest Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino.
State and city law enforcement agents have no authority, in most circumstances, to investigate conduct by federal agents acting in their official capacity.
Elianne Bahena, a member of the 10th (Ogden) Police District Council, said CPD “contributed to (the) chaos” that swept Chicago during what the Trump administration called “Operation Midway Blitz” despite the city’s Welcoming City ordinance, which prohibits all city employees from assisting federal immigration agents in nearly all cases.
“Community members are treated like they’re the threat,” Bahena said. “Well, all we have had is our whistles and our bodies while masked men stand there with their guns.
“When ICE and Border Patrol terrorized our neighborhoods, and the Chicago Police Department shows up, we’re left asking one simple question: Who are they protecting?” Bahena asked.
Bahena, who is also chief of staff for Ald. Mike Rodriguez (22nd Ward), was detained by federal agents on Oct. 22 after a raid in Little Village sparked protests. Bahena was not charged with wrongdoing.
Bahena and other speakers said the CCPSA should hold a hearing to demand answers from Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling and all 22 commanders of Chicago’s police districts.
Both Mayor Brandon Johnson and Snelling have said CPD officers have complied with the Welcoming City ordinance. Snelling has said CPD must respond to all calls for help, and has a responsibility to keep the peace at all times, while ensuring Chicagoans can exercise their right to protest.
However, Johnson has told reporters he is concerned that the increasing anger from Chicagoans over CPD’s interactions with federal agents will thwart his efforts to increase trust between community members and the CPD.
Several speakers said ICE and Border Patrol agents would not have been able carry out their violent raids without officers blocking traffic and preventing Chicagoans from documenting and protesting the agents’ actions.
Bovino, and the agents under his command, falsely depicted ordinary Chicagoans as professional agitators determined to mount a violent resistance, U.S. District Court Judge Sara Ellis ruled in November.
On several occasions, those agents called 911 to report that they were being attacked by protesters.
The most recent incident occurred on Dec. 17, when Bovino and dozens of agents returned to Chicago after an absence of several weeks.
An agent, traveling north on Lake Shore Drive, called 911 and told a dispatcher that a car was trying to force them off the road.
CPD activated a helicopter and stopped a man who had been following the federal convoy and gave him a “verbal warning” about driving while using a cellphone in response to that call, records show.
Bovino later praised CPD for helping his agents.
Omar Luna, the man who was stopped by police, told the crowd at Thursday’s hearing that he was recording the agents’ activities to warn others of their presence, a claim proven by the video he uploaded to social media.
Snelling and police brass have also faced intense criticism from federal officials, who accused his command staff of ordering officers not to immediately respond to a call for help from Border Patrol agents on Oct. 4 after they shot a 31-year-old woman five times.
The shooting sparked intense protests that ended after federal agents deployed tear gas against a crowd of residents and more than two dozen police officers.
WTTW News coverage of policing and police reform is supported by The Joyce Foundation.
Contact Heather Cherone: @HeatherCherone | (773) 569-1863 | [email protected]
