Chicago judge orders 600+ detained immigrants released over violations

A federal judge in Chicago has ordered the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to release more than 600 illegal immigrants held in a suburban detention center, charging the agency with “repeated, material violations” of a court-approved consent decree that limits who can be detained under U.S. immigration law.

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Cummings ruled that more than 600 detainees held at the Broadview ICE facility must be released “on bail and under ICE’s Alternatives to Detention (ATD) program” by Nov. 21, citing what he called a “pattern of unlawful arrest and incarceration.”

The decision stems from Margarito Castañon Nava v. DHS, a class action lawsuit alleging that federal agents unlawfully detained hundreds of immigrants who were not subject to mandatory detention or final deportation orders; This is a direct violation of the 2021 Biden-era executive order inherited by the Trump administration.

In the ruling, Cummings accused DHS of holding immigrants in “unsafe and unsanitary” conditions and said detainees were being held in overcrowded facilities “next to overflowing toilets.” The judge also said the department’s recent revocation of detention authority represents a “180-degree change” from previous legal interpretations.

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The decision could force the largest single-day release of ICE detainees in Illinois in years and free hundreds of people arrested during “Operation Midway Blitz,” a Trump enforcement sweep that immigration activists say has traumatized Chicago-area communities.

“Today was a good day as the court ordered the immediate release of 13 people who were wrongfully arrested and detained by federal immigration authorities,” said Michelle Garcia, deputy legal director of the ACLU of Illinois. “More than 600 people may soon be released as the court enforces our agreement with the federal government, a step toward accountability for years of unlawful detention.”

But DHS officials harshly condemned the decision, accusing the court of harming national security and law enforcement.

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Police detained two people as tear gas filled the air after being used by federal law enforcement during a confrontation with community members and activists who reportedly shot a woman in the Brighton Park neighborhood on October 4, 2025, in Broadview, Illinois. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

“At every turn, activist judges, defector politicians, and violent rioters have actively sought to prevent our law enforcement from apprehending and eliminating the worst of the worst,” DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News Digital.

“Now an activist judge is putting American lives at direct risk by ordering the release of 615 illegal aliens into society.”

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Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino leaves the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago on October 28. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Cummings directed DHS to identify detainees deemed “high public safety risks” who may remain in custody and submit a compliance report by Nov. 24.