Ranking Member Underwood Shares Updates with Community Following Briefing on Illinois Operations by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

WASHINGTON — Today, Rep. Lauren Underwood, Ranking Member of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Appropriations, was briefed by leadership at U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on the agency’s operations in the Chicagoland area.

“Everyone deserves to feel safe in their community. Like all Illinoisans, I’ve been concerned and alarmed by reporting about ICE’s conduct and operations in our state under Donald Trump,” said Rep. Underwood. “As Ranking Member of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Appropriations, I requested a briefing from agency leadership on the enhanced operations that started last Saturday, and I’m sharing what I heard with our community.”

Agency leadership shared the following information and updates on ICE’s operations in the Chicagoland area with Ranking Member Underwood, and she is sharing them with the community:

• Current “surge” operations began on Saturday, September 6, 2025, and will continue until the agency receives guidance from the Trump Administration indicating otherwise.
  • The agency did not provide any public safety or other data to justify increased operations in Illinois, or any metrics that it plans to use to determine when the surge will end.
• This surge, which the Trump Administration has termed “Operation Midway Blitz,” is not just in Chicago – it is reportedly designated to include the entire state of Illinois plus Lake County, Indiana. ICE reported they are currently focused on the Chicagoland area and surrounding suburbs.
• The law enforcement personnel deployed in this surge are from ICE (which includes HSI) and from the U.S. Department of Justice (which includes the U.S. Marshalls, DEA, and ATF).
• Since September 6, ICE reports it has taken 250 individuals in custody from this operation. Individuals who are detained and processed are transferred to detention centers in Indiana and Wisconsin.
  • Family members experiencing difficulties getting in touch with individuals held in these or other ICE detention centers are encouraged to contact their U.S. Senators and Representative for casework assistance.
• As Administration officials have indicated publicly, ICE’s enforcement actions for this operation are focused on individuals they encounter who they have determined are “in the U.S. illegally,”* specifically:
  • Individuals who the Trump Administration says are “in the U.S. illegally” and have been charged or convicted with a crime, especially those whose charges may not have been pursued due to what ICE describes as “sanctuary laws.”**
  • Individuals who the Trump Administration says are “in the U.S. illegally” and have been arrested but NOT charged or convicted of a crime, especially those who were arrested or released in a jurisdiction that ICE has determined is a “sanctuary.”

Regardless of immigration status, every person in the United States has constitutional rights. Underwood encourages everyone to exercise your rights and follow the law when engaging with federal law enforcement. Individuals who believe they have suffered personal injury or property damage from an ICE employee can file a claim at https://www.ice.gov/about-ice/opla/ftca. 

Residents of IL-14 who need assistance working with federal agencies like ICE are always encouraged to contact Rep. Underwood’s office for free assistance at (630) 549-2190 or https://underwood.house.gov/services/help-federal-agency.

* Unlike previous Republican or Democratic Administrations, the Trump Administration uses this term to describe individuals who immigrated legally but whose status under programs like Temporary Protected Status has now been terminated by the Trump Administration.

** Despite prioritizing immigration enforcement actions targeting so-called “sanctuary jurisdictions,” the Trump Administration has been unable to provide a specific definition of what it actually considers to be a “sanctuary,” causing confusion for local law enforcement and communities. A list of alleged sanctuary jurisdictions posted on the DHS website in June was quickly removed after the National Sherriff’s Association called out its lack of transparency and accountability, and www.dhs.gov/sanctuary-jurisdictions is still broken as of September 15, 2025.

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