2:20 p.m.
Pritzker talks the discrepancies in Homeland Security’s initial narrative about fatally shooting Silverio Villegas González in suburban Franklin Park, and how body-worn camera footage disproved their initial narrative
“Silverio’s children have now been left without a father, and they and the public deserve to know the truth. There’s been zero accountability or transparency from ice or the administration,” Pritzker said.
He also talks about the ICE raid on the South Shore apartment building, and how DHS Secretary Kristi Noem posted a cinematic sizzle-reel of the raid.
“They brought blackhawk military helicopters and more than 100 agents in full tactical gear, even though it was supposedly a very dangerous and important mission. They brought dozens of cameras and set them up so that they could film their attack on the building in HD for social media. See for yourself,” Pritzker says. He then shows the video on screen.
“Imagine being a child awakened in the middle of the night by a blackhawk helicopter landing on your roof. Imagine an armed stranger entering your home and forcibly removing you from your bed, zip-tying your hands, separating you from your family and detaining you in a dark van for hours. This didn’t happen in some far away authoritarian regime. It happened right here in Chicago, right here in the United States of America,” Pritzker said.
He continued: “The reports of excessive use of force against children is unconscionable, and the way many innocent residents who lived in the building were treated is appalling. In response, I’ve directed the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and the Illinois Department of Human Services to provide support and to evaluate the treatment of the children who were traumatized. If they find suspected abuse or neglect by federal agents, the state will be taking every possible action to hold those individuals accountable.”
2:26 p.m.
Pritzker then speaks to the little girl who was detained with her family in Millennium Park in downtown Chicago.
“How did detaining them make anyone safer?” he asks.
He talks about Broadview, a suburb with a population of 8,000 people, and the way federal agents have detained a journalist, fired chemical irritants at protestors and more.
“After seeing this, I could not, in good faith, allow federal agents to continue inciting people who were there to express their First Amendment rights. At the request of the Broadview Police Department and with the help of the Cook County Sheriff’s Office, we sent back up to ensure people could safely express their rights while also protecting nearby Broadview residents who have had ICE and CBP operating in their neighborhoods in an aggressive fashion and interfering with their daily lives,” Pritzker said.
2:30 p.m.
Pritzker lays out what happened in Logan Square with federal agents tossing tear gas canisters in a neighborhood with a school nearby.
He then shows footage of Chicago Ald. Jessie Fuentes being detained by federal agents for asking for a judicial warrant for someone inside the hospital emergency room.
“If arresting an elected official for peacefully asking questions isn’t a demonstration of authoritarianism, then what is?” Pritzker asks.
He added: “The state of Illinois is going to use every lever at our disposal to resist this power grab and get Noem’s thugs the hell out of Chicago. I’m not afraid. I am not afraid, and I won’t back down.”
2:43 p.m.
Mayor Brandon Johnson speaks at the podium following Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s remarks.
“Today, I stand with all of our elected officials and community leaders in denouncing President Trump’s declared war on Chicago and Illinois,” Johnson said. “I promise that the city of Chicago will do everything in our power to protect the constitutional rights of all Chicagoans. This lawsuit is the latest demonstration of our commitment.”
Johnson said Trump initially worked to defund sanctuary cities.
“A federal judge recently dismissed that lawsuit, and the courts have prevented the administration from restricting the city’s funding based on our local laws. Now that the president has lost those cases, he is changing tactics: send in the guard,” Johnson said.
2:48 p.m.
Notably missing from today’s press conferences — Johnson held one this morning and Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling held one this afternoon — is new Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke.
Cook County President Toni Preckwinkle took the podium and thanked the leaders in the room. She named a few: members of our congressional delegation, Congressman Jesús “Chuy” García (IL-04), Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), Congressman Mike Quigley (IL-05), Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), Congressman Brad Schneider (D-IL), Congresswoman Robin Kelly and Congressman Danny K. Davis.
3:00 p.m.
State and local leaders are taking questions from the press.
Raoul takes a question about the timing of the lawsuit.
“I’ve known of talk about the Illinois National Guard for weeks, but it was not ripe for filing. Your interpretation, from perhaps a journalistic point of view, is different from that from a legal point of view. I don’t want to file a lawsuit that summarily dismiss because it’s not ripe for filing,” Raoul said.
3:05 p.m.
Mayor Johnson takes a question about Snelling’s comments that police do not arrest federal agents.
“The executive orders are about ensuring that we are protecting the people of Chicago and defending our democracy. I’ve given very direct instructions to ensure that all of our sister agencies and our city departments are doing just that, upholding the local ordinances and, again, protecting and defending the rights of every single resident as far as being able to enforce the measures that we put forward,” Johnson said. “We’re going to use every single tool that’s available to us, as I’ve stated before, you just heard the governor express it as well, this battle is going to take place in the courts and in our communities.”
3:30 p.m.
Trump again called Chicago a “war zone” today. He took questions after his afternoon press conference.
“Why is it that a governor wouldn’t accept free help? Trump said. “Chicago’s a great city potentially.”
Trump said his administration has “no choice” but to save Chicago, Portland and other unsafe places.
“We’re going to make Chicago really great again,” Trump said.
Earlier today, Pritzker said Chicago is experiencing historic lows in crime.
Asked about the Insurrection Act, Trump said he will enact it if he needs to.
[SRC] https://thetriibe.com/2025/10/live-illinois-chicago-sues-trump-to-block-national-guard-deployment-pritzker-and-johnson-to-speak-at-presser-today/
