Good morning, Chicago. ✶
🔎 Below: The federal building in Broadview, where immigrants are held after arrest, was never designed to be a detention facility, but President Donald Trump’s administration is now using it as one — minus rules and oversight.
🗞️ Plus: Women punched by a stranger seek answers, how the government shutdown is affecting federal workers in Illinois and more news you need to know.
📝 Keeping score: The Cubs fell to the Padres, 3-0.
📧 Subscribe: Get this newsletter delivered to your inbox weekday mornings.
⏱️: A 9-minute read
TODAY’S WEATHER 🌤️
Mostly sunny with a high near 85.
TODAY’S TOP STORIES
ICE’s Broadview facility has become a de facto detention center — minus rules and oversight
By Lauren FitzPatrick and Adriana Cardona-Maguigad
Center of detention: The federal building in suburban Broadview, where federal officers hold immigrants after arresting them, was never designed to be a detention facility — but President Trump’s administration is now using it as a de facto one. ICE detention centers hold immigrants for longer stays, unlike processing centers, which are designed only for quick intake.
At issue: Detention centers come with clear rules. They post visiting hours and procedures online and are subject to regular inspections and federal standards. Little is known about the Broadview facility, where 5,200 people were processed and held for as little as an hour and as long as seven days from January through July 28, before Trump’s “blitz” began.
Inside Broadview: Inside the ICE processing building at 1930 Beach St., there’s no medical staff or services. No food preparation. No beds. That’s all by design because the facility was created for very short-term holds. Detainees have no private way to speak with their lawyers, attorneys say. The cells are crowded. Toilets are out in the open. A 2023 report noted one out-of-commission shower used for storage.
Present state: Arrests are believed to have ramped up since Trump launched his “blitz” in Chicago on Sept. 8, though ICE has yet to release detailed data. According to several immigrants, conditions inside the Broadview facility have not improved.
‘Extremely dirty’: A recently deported detainee summed up three miserable days in the “extremely dirty” Broadview facility: For sleeping, there are crowded, cold floors or scant plastic chairs for dozens of men. For eating, sandwiches and water. For bathroom needs, a toilet out in the open, no soap or toothpaste. “They treated us like animals, or worse than animals, because no one treats their pets like that,” he said.
More headlines:
- Massive immigration raid on Chicago apartment building leaves residents reeling: ‘I feel defeated’
- Federal agents detain, release man after traffic crash: CPD
- Public defenders call on chief judge to bar ICE arrests at Cook County courthouses
✶✶✶✶
Women attacked near transit stations say they think they were slugged by same man
By Casey He
Unprovoked attacks: A picture that circulated on social media connected two women who were punched during unprovoked attacks near Union Station and a Metra station near Rate Field, they told the Sun-Times.
The connection: Lynsy Howard, 36, says she was walking on Jackson Boulevard Sept. 20 with a friend when they passed by a man who punched her in the head. Howard’s friend snapped a photo to share with police. A 26-year-old woman says a similarly dressed man punched her in the face near the 35th Street Metra station Friday. Howard and the woman connected after Howard’s friend saw a Facebook post that the woman’s mom made about the attack.
No arrests: The Chicago Police Department told the Sun-Times on Wednesday that no arrests have been made in either case. It did not respond to further questions about whether it believes the two cases were committed by the same person or were a part of a larger pattern.
✶✶✶✶
Illinois federal workers are heavily stressed as government shutdown yanks paychecks
By Mary Norkol, Esther Yoon-Ji Kang, Kade Heather and Jon Seidel
Shutdown impacts: The U.S. government shut down after the Senate failed to approve a short-term funding bill Tuesday night, jeopardizing the pay and employment of thousands of workers across Illinois and the country, and scaling back operations at federal facilities such as national parks.
Key context: While most government shutdowns mean nonessential workers are furloughed until a government spending bill has been approved, President Trump has said the shutdown may mean layoffs instead, adding to mass cuts to the federal workforce made during his presidency.
Worker stress: News of the latest shutdown came to many workers with minimal information, causing confusion over whether they’re expected to show up for work, uncertainties about the length of the shutdown, and anxiety over their ability to pay for groceries, rent, childcare, transportation and other essential costs, according to union leaders.
GAMES AND CROSSWORDS 🧩
This week’s Chicago-style crossword theme is: Architecture.
Here’s your clue:
1A: Frank Lloyd ___ (architect born and raised in Oak Park)
MORE NEWS YOU NEED
- Alarming report: Suffocating while sleeping remains a leading cause of death for Cook County babies, and Black babies are suffering the most, a new report found.
- Student visa changes: Under current rules, international students can legally remain in the U.S. as long as they maintain full-time enrollment at their institution. But the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced in late August that it would move to set the duration of visas to match a student’s program length — four years at most.
- Remembering Ron Carroll: A renowned house DJ and vocalist who performed worldwide, Mr. Carroll remained a Chicago music fixture, cultivating community through his work. He died Sept. 21 at age 54.
- Latina Comedy Festival returns: Running Thursday through the weekend, the fourth annual festival arrives as festival organizers say they’re grappling with what it means to host the event amid Trump’s campaign against immigration.
- 3.5 stars for ‘Mr. Wolf’: Actor Caroline Neff shines in this staging of Rajiv Joseph’s 2015 play about a kidnapped young woman who is returned to her birth family, writes Steven Oxman in a review for the Sun-Times.
REEL NEWS 🎥
New John Candy documentary offers deeper understanding of comedian
Reporting by Erica Thompson
Candy’s characters: In his relatively short career, John Candy created a slew of scene-stealing characters in movies, including several filmed in the Chicago area. There are the orange whip-loving parole officer in “The Blues Brothers,” the good-hearted “polka king of the Midwest” in “Home Alone” and the irresponsible but lovable titular character in “Uncle Buck.”
New film: Fans will be able to revisit the magic the late comedian created in the new documentary “John Candy: I Like Me,” directed by Colin Hanks. Ahead of its Oct. 10 release on Prime Video, the Chicago Theatre will host a Sunday screening and Q&A with actor Ryan Reynolds, who produced the film.
Chicago connection: The historic Chicago Theatre is a fitting location to celebrate Candy, a Canadian native and alum of The Second City Toronto who also brought improvised shows to Chicago. Candy came to prominence with a class of other notable Second City-trained comedians, including Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi and Bill Murray. And he would go on to work with director John Hughes on films set in or referencing Chicago, including “Planes, Trains and Automobiles,” one of Candy’s most popular projects.
Generous legacy: Candy’s film career was cut short when he died of a heart attack at 43 in 1994. His collaborators and family members say he had a deep impact on the Chicago comedy scene and beyond with his joy-filled performances, good nature and generosity.
FROM THE PRESS BOX ⚾🏀🏒🏈
- Cubs analysis: Maddie Lee reports that coach Craig Counsell’s pitching decisions are being scrutinized. But Steve Greenberg has a suggestion for the Cubs: Try hitting the ball. Here’s how to watch Thursday’s game.
- Giddey clears the air: It was always a “negotiation” for the Bulls and point guard Josh Giddey, writes Joe Cowley.
- Big question: How can the Blackhawks help Connor Bedard create more space this season? Ben Pope mulls the options.
- Unsolved puzzles: Bears coach Ben Johnson is weighing an offensive-line dance as he tries to solve puzzles at both tackle positions.
BRIGHT ONE 🔆
Big demand for pumpkin patches has farms, pop-up events prepared to deliver
Reporting by Mariah Rush
Blake Lanphier spent Monday afternoon unloading five semitrucks with 28 bins of pumpkins — each bin weighing 800 pounds — for the start of pumpkin season at Historic Wagner Farm in Glenview.
Lanphier, who manages the 18-acre farm, said in recent years, they’ve struggled to keep up with customer demand. They have to source pumpkins from other local growers and arrange a weekly pickup.
“We have seen an increase in visitation over the last five years,” Lanphier said. In 2019, the farm saw about 100,000 annual visitors. Now, it’s reached 135,000 to 140,000 people.
It expects a strong turnout this year. Pumpkin sales started Wednesday.
Since the pandemic, there has been an increase in demand for fall activities, with Chicagoans spending a carefree day picking pumpkins at places such as Historic Wagner Farm, elaborate pop-ups like Jack’s Pumpkin Pop-Up in West Town and numerous JoJo’s Pumpkin Patch locations that are adjacent to every JoJo’s Shake Bar.
Social media is driving much of the growth. Photogenic and video-ready fall-themed activities have become a hallmark strategy for many Chicago area businesses. JoJo’s and Historic Wagner say these events boost business and entice visitors to become year-round customers.
YOUR DAILY QUESTION ☕️
Yesterday, we asked you: What’s a book that changed the way you think about Chicago? Tell us why.
Here’s some of what you said…
“‘Division Street’ by Studs Terkel. It opened my eyes to the great variety of people living in Chicago. And Division Street encompasses all types of people.”— Don Hedeker
“‘City of the Century’ by Donald L. Miller made clear that Chicago’s 19th century growth was beyond belief: [From] a population of 200 people in [the early 1800s] to 1 million in 1890.”— Craig Barner
“‘Boss’ by Mike Royko. While I was in high school, I read his column regularly, but reading that book while in college put a lot of the snippets together.”— Christopher Rosecrants
“‘Chicago And Its Suburbs’ by Everett Chamberlin. It is from 1874 and gives a great description of the city and suburbs of that time. It even includes areas like Schaumburg and Roselle. It shows … that the whole way the city and suburbs are today diametrically opposed to each other was almost nonexistent at that time.”— Robert Haugland
“‘Our America: Life and Death on the South Side of Chicago’ by LeAlan Jones and Lloyd Newman … As someone who grew up fairly sheltered and privileged in [the] suburbs, this book really helped me understand the legacy of discrimination in Chicago and the realities of the lives of the people who were/are most affected by it. But because it’s written from the perspective of preteens, the book contains a lot of humor and levity.”— Steph Gladstein
Thanks for reading the Sun-Times Morning Edition!
Got a story you think we missed? Email us here.
Written and curated by: Matt Moore
Editor: Eydie Cubarrubia
The Chicago Sun-Times is a nonprofit supported by readers like you. Become a member to make stories like these free and available to everyone. Learn more at suntimes.com/member.