Feds arrest teacher at Chicago daycare after pursuit, officials say

CHICAGO - A video that began circulating on social media Wednesday morning shows federal immigration agents detaining a Chicago daycare teacher who federal officials say is an undocumented immigrant.

However, the teacher's attorney said she's legally allowed to work in the U.S. and is an asylum seeker.

What we know:

The incident happened around 7 a.m. outside Rayito de Sol Spanish Immersion Early Learning Center, located at 2550 W. Addison St. on the city’s North Side.

Video shows agents forcibly removing a woman from the daycare and pressing her against a vehicle.

Adam Gonzalez witnessed the incident while dropping off his young son.

"This is a daycare," Gonzalez said. "There are so many teachers that come here every day, and for someone to just take a preschool teacher who pours herself into these children, it's just not right."

U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Chicago) said the woman is a teacher at the center. An attorney for the woman told FOX 32 that she is a legal resident with a pending asylum case.

Quigley said the teacher was followed by agents into the daycare and detained in front of children, "causing panic and fear." He added that they did not present a warrant and "showed complete disregard for the safety of the children present."

"This is a parent's worst nightmare," Quigley said. "You drop your kids off at daycare or school every day and assume they're gonna be safe. This is a violation of public trust and should send shivers down the spine of every parent."

Maria Guzman, a parent of a child at the daycare, called the arrest "domestic terrorism" and a violation of the rights of the teachers and children at the daycare.

The other side:

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said on X that ICE did not target the daycare, but tried to conduct a traffic stop of a female undocumented immigrant from Colombia.

DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said agents tried to stop the car, which was registered to the woman, with their sirens and emergency lights activated, but a male driver "refused to pull the vehicle over."

She said ICE pursued the car before the driver "sped into a shopping plaza where he and the female passenger fled the vehicle. They ran into a daycare and attempted to barricade themselves inside the daycare - recklessly endangering the children inside."

McLaughlin said the woman was arrested inside a vestibule, not in the school. She also claimed the woman "lied about her identity," but didn't specify how.

She said "facts including criminality and information on the male assailant are forthcoming."

Still, Gonzalez said he worries the incident has traumatized the children at the daycare.

"I never thought in a thousand years that people would want to prioritize taking daycare workers and coming into a daycare with children here," he said. "It just doesn't make any sense."

The backstory:

The detention comes amid increased federal immigration enforcement in the Chicago area under President Donald Trump. The heightened activity has sparked protests across the city and legal challenges to federal tactics.

On Wednesday morning, Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino was in federal court in Chicago to address his agency’s use of force against protesters. A judge previously ordered agents not to deploy tear gas unless under imminent threat, but video from a recent protest appears to show Bovino violating that order.