Chicago mayor condemns ICE arrest of daycare teacher in front of children: 'shocked the conscience'

'Shocked the conscience': Chicago mayor reacts to ICE agents detaining teacher in front of children

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson on Thursday talked about an incident the day before in which federal immigration agents forcibly removed a teacher from a North Side daycare in front of children.

CHICAGO - A daycare arrest in Chicago has drawn outrage from city leaders, parents, and witnesses after federal immigration agents detained a teacher in front of children.

What we know:

Mayor Brandon Johnson opened his Thursday media briefing with sharp criticism of the incident, which took place Wednesday morning at Rayito de Sol Spanish Immersion Early Learning Center in the North Center neighborhood.

"ICE agents entered a daycare. They went inside of a preschool. They tore a teacher out of a classroom in front of their children," Johnson said. "That video shocked the conscience of every single Chicagoan… We most certainly cannot have this in our city or our country."

Johnson accused federal agents of having "acted with impunity" and said the city would pursue all possible measures to hold them accountable.

The backstory:

Video circulating online shows agents detaining the teacher, identified by her attorney as a legally authorized asylum seeker, outside the daycare around 7 a.m.

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Feds arrest teacher at Chicago daycare after pursuit, officials say

Video shows federal agents forcibly removing a teacher from a Chicago daycare on Wednesday morning.

Witness Adam Gonzalez said he saw the arrest as he dropped off his son.

"This is a daycare… to just take a preschool teacher who pours herself into these children, it’s just not right," he said.

U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Chicago) said agents followed the teacher into the daycare and detained her in front of children, "causing panic and fear," without presenting a warrant.

"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."

The other side:

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson denied the daycare was targeted and said the incident began when agents were conducting a traffic stop.

According to DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin, agents with their sirens and lights activated tried to stop the car that the teacher was a passenger in, but the male driver refused to pull over. Both occupants allegedly ran into the daycare and tried to barricade themselves inside, "recklessly endangering the children."

McLaughlin said the woman was arrested inside a vestibule, not the school, and that she "lied about her identity" but didn't specify how. The woman, from Colombia, entered the United States illegally in June 2023 and obtained authorization to work under the Biden administration. Her 16- and 17-year-old children crossed the border illegally last month near El Paso, Texas, and were brought to a government shelter in Chicago for unaccompanied migrant children.

DHS said more information on the male driver is forthcoming.

Big picture view:

The incident adds tension to already fraught relations between Chicago and federal immigration authorities. The city has clashed with federal agencies over enforcement tactics.

Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino has defended the use of force by agents accused of using pepper balls, tear gas and other tactics against people protesting federal immigration policies and the detaining of immigrants in the area.

"I didn’t have any reason to think it would be this bad, but it’s far worse than I ever thought," Bovino said in an interview Monday. He called his agents "sanctuary busters," a swipe at so-called sanctuary cities, like Chicago, that limit cooperation with immigration authorities.

Mayor Johnson in his remarks on Thursday also took aim at the Border Patrol chief.

"Greg Bovino allegedly told the court that this is his F'ing, or blank, city. No, Greg, it's not. The city belongs to Chicagoans. Your agents have broken laws. They have acted with impunity. But at the end of the day, we will hold you accountable for the crimes you have committed against our people," Johnson said.

"Ripping a teacher out of a daycare just further proves that this operation has nothing to do with the, quote, worst of the worst, end quote. The cruelty and the inhumanity that has been on display, that is their point. They're trying to intimidate us and we certainly see how far they are willing to go. We will continue to push back and resist this tyranny. We will use every single tool at our disposal. We will certainly push to look for additional measures that we can use to enforce our Constitution."