The Village of Broadview filed a lawsuit late Friday against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, citing serious public safety concerns over an illegal fence erected outside the immigration facility at 1930 Beach St.
The facility has become a hub for anti-ICE protests since the Trump administration announced the launch of “Operation Midway Blitz” last month, bringing a flood of federal immigration officers to the Chicago area to conduct raids and arrests.
DHS put up an 8-foot fence outside the federal compound following clashes between federal agents and protesters. But village officials said the fence, which extends across Beach Street, was placed “illegally” and without a permit.
Village officials filed the lawsuit late Friday after asking DHS to dismantle the fence, but the agency “has refused,” citing incidents in which officers were allegedly assaulted by protesters. Village officials also filed a request for an emergency temporary restraining order.
“ICE’s illegally constructed fence on a public street, Beach Street, in the Village of Broadview, is an unacceptable risk,” village of Broadview acting fire chief Matt Martin said in a statement. “The fence is currently blocking access for the Broadview Fire Department to businesses on that road. In case of a fire or other emergency, our fire trucks or ambulances cannot use the street to get to the scene.
“Every day that fence remains, in defiance of local law, the risk of tragedy increases. That is the law of probability. The law of probability and our local law apply to everyone, including the federal government. That is why we filed suit in federal court.”
Despite the fence, clashes at protests have continued, with federal officers pushing demonstrators and firing rubber bullets and chemical munitions into the crowd.
The lawsuit follows a narrowly missed visit on Friday between Broadview Mayor Katrina Thompson and U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
Village officials said Noem made an unannounced visit to Village Hall requesting a meeting with Thompson, but Thompson was out of the office. In response, Thompson went to the ICE facility to meet with Noem, but she was told the secretary was unavailable. U.S. Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino also visited the Broadview site Friday.
DHS and ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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