CBP Chief Greg Bovino ordered to report to judge every weekday on Chicago immigration operations

CHICAGO - U.S. Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino was ordered by a U.S. District judge to report to her every weekday for updates on their immigration enforcement efforts in the Chicago area.

Bovino appeared in federal court in Chicago on Tuesday to answer questions about his use of tear gas in Chicago neighborhoods in apparent violation of a court order.

What we know:

Judge Sara Ellis ordered Bovino to appear in court after video posted on social media last week appeared to show Border Patrol agents violating her order not to use tear gas unless they were under imminent physical danger and after multiple verbal warnings.

The Department of Homeland Security released its own video on Tuesday claiming to show a projectile being launched near the direction of Bovino before he appeared to throw a tear gas canister.

Bovino also admitted he wasn't wearing a body camera, violating another one of the judge's orders.

"The cameras are your friend, so when someone comes back and says something, it's all documented," Ellis told Bovino.

She later added, "If someone's throwing a rock at your head, the camera will catch it."

Local perspective:

Enrique Bahena recorded the Little Village standoff last week before being pelted with a pepper bullet. He said he did not witness the crowd of onlookers threatening or throwing anything at agents.

"I've seen people get tackled," Bahena said. "I've seen people getting thrown, get thrown into the cars, get thrown on the floor. It's like way too much aggression on their part."

Ellis also referred to footage of this weekend's action on a residential street in Old Irving Park where residents saw tear gas being used, the takedown of a 70-year-old American citizen and danger near where a family Halloween parade was planned.

Resident Brian Kolp said he and his neighbors were horrified by the conduct of Border Patrol agents.

"In no way, shape or form did anything that anybody do that day justify throwing a smoke grenade on my block or taking my 70-year-old neighbor to the ground and breaking six of his ribs," Kolp said.

Ellis said, "These kids' sense of safety was shattered Saturday, and it's going to take a long time for that to come back, if ever. And not only was it shattered, but it's connected to something that should have been a happy day."

She urged the agents to cool it this Friday for Halloween.

Bovino said he would abide by her temporary restraining order.

Bovino testifies in federal court

11:36 a.m. - Court hearing ends.

11:35 a.m. — Judge Ellis delivers instructions on how CBP should file their reports.

11:30 a.m. — Judge Ellis cited real concerns with federal agents after seeing videos from the public showing confrontations between CBP and residents. Ellis said she would not tie law enforcement's hands but expects them to know their responsibility in terms of use of force. If they use tear gas, they need to be able to justify it, Ellis said.

11:22 a.m. — Attorneys for Bovino requested the judge to modify the TRO on the basis that tear gas is used to allow federal agents to leave highly volatile situations so more lethal force doesn't occur.

Judge Sarah Ellis denied the request to alter the TRO, expecting the daily reports from Bovino to create more accountability.

11:14 a.m. — Bovino leaves the courtroom.

11:11 a.m. — Judge Ellis wants to have any CBP use-of-force reports within 24 hours of them being finalized, along with body cam footage.

Ellis requested Bovino see her at 6 p.m. every weekday in person for a report on how the day went until the TRO expires. On Mondays, Bovino will give her a report on how the weekend went.

11:08 a.m. — Judge Ellis asked for all of CBP's use of force reports dating back to Sept. 2 be given to her by the close of business today. Bovino requested more time and they agreed on submitting them by Friday.

11:05 a.m. — Judge Ellis described the Old Irving Park neighborhood, saying the children's sense of safety was shattered by CBP agents, and it will take a long time for that to come back, if ever. Ellis cited the tear gas deployment during a Halloween parade as one of the reasons she wanted to have this hearing and make sure Bovino is holding to his oath.

She said people who don't like what Border Patrol is doing in the city should not be tear-gassed simply for having their own opinions.

Bovino told the judge the CBP would abide by her TRO.

10:56 a.m. - Ellis brought up when tear gas was deployed in Chicago's Old Irving Park neighborhood last Saturday near a children's Halloween parade. She said someone was tackled and put in a headlock. Ellis asked Bovino if agents are allowed to do chokeholds.

Bovino replied that it depends on the circumstances before Ellis started reading over the 2023 CBP use of force policy and when the use of deadly force is appropriate.

Bovino said the agent's actions would depend on the situation and what the person is doing.

10:53 a.m. — Judge Ellis went over two TRO violation notices that were filed last week from incidents in the Little Village neighborhood.

The filings cited specific incidents where agents allegedly tackled a woman recording video and CBP Chief Greg Bovino deployed two tear gas canisters into a crowd without warning recorded in the video or by witnesses.

Ellis said agents leaving the scene pointed a gun at a combat veteran's face and said, "bang bang." The judge asked Bovino where the serious threat was

Bovino replied that he doesn't know all the facts in each situation. 

10:34 a.m. - Judge Ellis brings up body cameras, which she ordered federal immigration officers to wear on Oct. 16 after seeing aggressive responses to protests.

Bovino said most CBP agents have been issued body cameras but not all of them have been trained on how to use them. He said training takes four hours but that the issue is ensuring the dispersement of equipment to 200 agents that are here now.

Bovino said he has not received the training to operate a body camera. Judge Ellis told him to get one by Friday and go through the proper training, to which Bovino replied, "Yes, ma'am."

10:29 a.m. — Topic shifts to federal agents wearing visible identification.

Judge Ellis: "Let's agree on where [identification] needs to be so it's consistent and I don't have to search in videos."

Bovino: "I'd like to offer a few locations because if they're wearing extra gear, it may cover up their identification."

10:26 a.m. — Ellis said the warnings to residents before riot control methods take place need to give people a reasonable time to comply. 

"This has been a consistent theme. No warnings give or time for people to comply. A warning does not consist of saying ‘get back’ or ‘get out of the way'. So when I invoked this, what I intended was for agents to give warning and if people do not comply and agents feel they need to use riot control methods, they must tell people what they're about to do, so people have the opportunity to comply. This isn't what I'm seeing," Ellis said.

10:23 a.m. — Judge Ellis addressed the woman in Little Village who was seen on video being pulled to the ground and arrested. She said the "video did not appear to show that she was posing an immediate threat."

10:20 a.m. — U.S. District Judge Sarah Ellis defines immediate and serious threats: "I'm well aware what may not look dangerous in one instance, a minute later could look different, and I realize I'm not there, but I'm getting videos from the plaintiffs and citizens and at least in what I see, knowing I'm not there, it's difficult to see that the force being used is necessary."

10:13 a.m. — The judge's summary of the TRO includes three points:

1. Journalists need to be left alone.

2. People can be on sidewalks or in other public spaces as long as they are acting lawfully.

3. Using riot control methods such as chemical irritants and rubber pellets on people who are not posing an immediate threat is not allowed.

On the third point, Ellis pointed to the deployment of tear gas near a childrens' Halloween parade on Saturday in the Old Irving Park neighborhood.

10:11 a.m. — Ellis begins by going over her previously issued Temporary Restraining Order (TRO), telling Bovino "maybe the TRO isn't clear, nobody ever read it, or you read it, understood it and actively chose not to abide by it."

10:10 a.m. — Ellis said her role is to make sure Bovino is acting consistent with federal law, the consent decree and the Temporary Restraining Order that she issued.

10:07 a.m. — Judge Ellis thanked Bovino for coming in to testify: "As I was getting ready, I took a look at the oath I took and the oath you took to do our jobs. In thinking about them, the words are different but we both agreed to support and defend the Constitution and the obligations we each have."

10:04 a.m. — U.S. District Judge Sarah Ellis arrives in the courtroom, swears in Bovino.

10:01 a.m. — Five attorneys are seated around Bovino while six others are posted up at the plaintiff's table.

9:56 a.m. — At least four uniformed Border Patrol agents are present in the courtroom for the proceedings.

9:53 a.m. — Bovino enters the courtroom as journalists and others are still being seated.

9:40 a.m. — Members of Chicago Flips Red, a local conservative movement that advocates for federal intervention in the city, arrived at the courthouse.

9:01 a.m. — Bovino arrives at the Dirksen federal courthouse, escorted by fellow CBP agents. Protesters confronted him at the entrance to the facility with some bearing signs such as "Stop ICE Brutality" and "Quick Fix: Nix Blitz," referencing the ongoing Operation Midway Blitz, the federal immigration crackdown in the Chicago area that has been led by Bovino.

Background

What we know:

Bovino was ordered to testify before U.S. District Judge Sara L. Ellis after video surfaced showing him appearing to throw a tear gas canister into a crowd of demonstrators in Little Village last week. The court order in question prohibits federal agents from using force or chemical agents unless a law is being broken.

Tear gas was reportedly used again on Saturday in Old Irving Park after agents were seen tackling a man in a yard, prompting nearby residents headed to a neighborhood Halloween parade to join spontaneous protests. Witnesses said the gas was deployed without provocation.

Bovino is also scheduled to sit for a five-hour deposition on Thursday. 

Legal analyst Karen Conti said the testimony could reveal whether Bovino instructed his agents to comply with or ignore the court’s order, and how he plans to proceed with future enforcement operations.

Conti noted that the situation could escalate if Bovino continues to assert that he takes orders only from the executive branch.

Judges can potentially jail individuals for violating court orders, she said, adding that the case highlights growing tension between federal agencies and the judiciary over immigration enforcement in Chicago.