Biden-Appointed Judge Orders Release of Hundreds Detained Under Trump Administration Immigration Operation
A federal judge has ordered the release of more than 600 people detained in Illinois during a Trump administration immigration enforcement initiative, CNN affiliate WLS reported—delivering a significant setback to federal efforts aimed at expanding detention and deportation of undocumented immigrants.
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Cummings, a Biden appointee, ruled Wednesday in favor of attorneys from the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) and the American Civil Liberties Union. The groups argued that more than 3,000 individuals were arrested from June through October as part of the large-scale enforcement campaign known as “Operation Midway Blitz.”
Under the ruling, 615 detainees must be granted bond by noon on November 21. The order applies only to individuals not subject to mandatory detention and who are not considered major security risks, according to the report.
“They’re all being awarded bond — 615 people — but how is that process going to happen?” asked Mark Fleming, an attorney with the NIJC, during a news conference Wednesday.
Fleming told CNN that those ordered released “are probably all over the country,” which means federal agencies will need to locate them before processing their release.
According to an NIJC news release issued Wednesday, the detainees were arrested by ICE agents across the Chicago area between June 11 and October 7.
Fleming, who spearheaded the lawsuit alleging that federal agents violated a 2022 settlement prohibiting warrantless arrests in the region, said the organization believes at least 1,100 of the roughly 3,000 people arrested have since voluntarily left the United States, saying they had “given up” on contesting their immigration cases.
In response to the court’s decision, Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin sharply criticized the ruling, arguing that it “puts the lives of Americans at risk.”
“At every turn, activist judges, sanctuary politicians, and violent rioters have actively tried to prevent our law enforcement officers from arresting and removing the worst of the worst,” McLaughlin said in a statement to CNN. “Now an ACTIVIST JUDGE is putting the lives of Americans directly at risk by ordering 615 illegal aliens be released into the community.”
It remains unclear whether the Trump administration will appeal the ruling, though such a move appears likely. Fleming said federal attorneys have already requested a stay until next Friday.
“All of this — all of the tactics of (senior Border Patrol official Gregory) Bovino, all of the tactics of (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) — have been unlawful in the vast, vast majority of arrests,” Fleming said.
The ruling arrives amid heightened tensions over racial profiling and constitutional violations — issues affecting both undocumented immigrants and legal residents — as the Trump administration’s sweeping deportation operation continues targeting individuals of all ages, including families, children, longtime residents, and suspected criminals. Federal agents have conducted arrests outside courthouses, during routine traffic stops, and in workplace raids.
One of those detained was Diana Galeano, a teacher at Rayito de Sol Day Care in Chicago. Video of her arrest — showing ICE officers entering the childcare center and escorting her away — sparked widespread outrage among parents and community advocates.
In a separate decision Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Jeremy C. Daniel, also a Biden appointee, granted Galeano’s habeas corpus petition filed last week, ruling that her detention was unlawful.
“The Court has recognized that Diana and scores of others like her should not be in custody indefinitely,” her attorney, Charlie Wysong, said in a statement following Daniel’s ruling. “This is an important step on Diana’s path to returning home where she belongs.”
ICE, meanwhile, is expected to continue its operations in Chicago. Responding to reports that Bovino planned to leave the city, McLaughlin told CNN, “We aren’t leaving Chicago,” and noted that street crime has fallen since the launch of “Operation Midway Blitz.”
