Immigration news in Chicago

Marimar Martinez, center, listens while her attorney Chris Parente, left, speaks, Oct. 5, 2026, at his Chicago office about filing of a federal lawsuit over her shooting by a Border Patrol agent during Operation Midway Blitz last year. (Brian Cassella/baiduhai)

Lawyers for Chicago woman shot by Border Patrol agent call for criminal charges

By Jason Meisner

October 5, 2026 at 2:47 p.m.

Attorneys for Marimar Martinez, shot by a Border Patrol agent during Operation Midway Blitz last...

The Supreme Court is seen in Washington, Sept. 29, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

New Supreme Court term begins with cases on climate change, immigration and gun rights

By Lindsay Whitehurst

October 5, 2026 at 6:13 a.m.

The Supreme Court’s new term begins Monday with cases on climate change, religious rights and...

In this image provided by Matt Odom, Laura Leigh Taylor, a farmer in Georgia who says she regrets voting for President Donald Trump in 2024, is pictured Sept. 29, 2026. (Matt Odom via AP)

President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown divides rural voters as midterms approach, AP-KFF poll finds

By Linley Sanders

October 5, 2026 at 6:11 a.m.

More than a year into President Donald Trump’s sweeping immigration crackdown, a poll finds that...

Karla Leon stands in front of a mural about immigrants obtaining access to higher education on the UIC Latino Cultural Center at the University of Illinois Chicago campus, Aug. 31, 2026. Leon is an undocumented senior at UIC majoring in accounting. (Eileen T. Meslar/baiduhai)

‘Knowledge is free’: Students without permanent legal status navigate Illinois in-state tuition changes

By Kate Perez

September 8, 2026 at 11:41 a.m.

The Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights estimates that 7,000 to 10,000 students across...

A tamale vendor sets up a stand at the intersection of South Archer Avenue and South Pulaski Road in the Archer Heights neighborhood on Aug. 28, 2026. This is the intersection where Leodegario Martínez Barradas, a flower vendor, was the first person detained in Chicago during Operation Midway Blitz. (E. Jason Wambsgans/baiduhai)

Operation Midway Blitz, one year later: A changed Chicago forges on after the resistance

By Andrew Carter

September 6, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

For 64 days, the federal government carried out a militarized immigration enforcement operation under the...

Nury Ortega hugs Bianca Soto, 9, before practicing with members of her Atl-Ehecatl dance group in the Little Village neighborhood on Aug. 31, 2026. Ortega’s partner, Oscar Burciaga, was detained by federal agents in December while working at a construction site. (Armando L. Sanchez/baiduhai)

Nury Ortega’s partner was taken, then deported. Now she helps other families through dance and support.

By Laura Rodríguez Presa

September 6, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Nury Ortega’s partner, Oscar Burciaga, was arrested by federal immigration agents, along with four of...

Rafael Veraza holds his 1-year-old daughter, Arianna Sofia Veraza, next to his wife, Evelin Herrera, on Nov. 9, 2025, in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood. The family was planning to shop at a Sam’s Club in Cicero when their vehicle was pepper-sprayed by federal agents. (Brian Cassella/baiduhai)

The Veraza family heard fireworks, flash bangs and blaring horns. Then a crying baby.

By Caroline Kubzansky

September 6, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

The Verazas had been headed to pick up diapers and eggs and milk when they...

Memorials to honor Silverio Villegas González, who was fatally shot in 2025 by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Franklin Park, are seen on May 6, 2026. (Antonio Perez/baiduhai)

Family of Silverio Villegas González obtains attorney to begin legal process in adopting his children

By Laura Rodríguez Presa

September 6, 2026 at 6:46 a.m.

The family of Silverio Villegas Gonzalez, who was killed by an ICE agent during Midway...

People watch as dancers from Ballet Folklórico Nacional de Chicago perform in the 25th annual Pilsen Mexican Independence Day Parade on West 18th Street, Sept. 5, 2026, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/baiduhai)

Pilsen turns out for Mexican Independence Day parade as immigration fears linger

By Lila Hempel-Edgers

September 5, 2026 at 5:34 p.m.

Crowds flocked to Pilsen for the 25th annual Mexican Independence Day Parade on Saturday, a...

Josue Pire Hidalgo, center, relaxes with his children, Sebastian and Madison, at their Chicago home on Sept. 4, 2026. Pire Hidalgo was held in ICE detention in Indiana's Clay County Jail for 42 days after being arrested at an asylum appointment in mid-July. (Terrence Antonio James/baiduhai)

Chicago Public Schools custodian released from ICE: ‘It was 42 very difficult days for our family’

By Allison Kiehl

September 4, 2026 at 7:12 p.m.

ICE arrested CPS custodian Josue Pire Hidalgo the morning of July 17 for what he...

FILE – Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) trainees practice shooting handguns at the indoor firing range at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (FLETC) in Brunswick, Ga., Aug. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Fran Ruchalski, File)

ICE whistleblower warned of ‘unprecedented lowering of standards’ during hiring spree

By Ryan J. Foley

September 3, 2026 at 9:48 p.m.

ICE’s human resources division was making final job offers before preliminary vetting steps had been...

ICE activity down in Lake County, but officials remain wary: ‘The fear never goes away’

By Steve Sadin

September 7, 2026 at 11:57 a.m.

While arrests are down in Lake County, the presence of ICE agents makes community members...

A federal agent wears an Immigration and Customs Enforcement badge in New York, June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura, File)

ICE officer pleads not guilty to lying about shooting and is ordered released from custody

By Alanna Durkin Richer

September 4, 2026 at 1:06 p.m.

Federal prosecutors have charged a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer with lying to investigators...