ICE Moves 600 Chicago Detainees To Distant Jails As Appeals Court Halts Releases

NBC 5 Investigates tracked a list of 604 people detained by ICE in the Chicago area and found many were transferred to detention centers and county jails across the U.S., with large numbers sent to Michigan, Texas, Indiana and multiple Kentucky jails. The report follows a federal judge’s finding that ICE violated a 2022 consent decree limiting warrantless arrests and ordered hundreds eligible for release, though the government appealed and a stay was issued pending a Seventh Circuit hearing. NBC 5’s analysis could not locate 190 people from the list and highlights problems with ICE transparency and family members’ difficulty in finding detainees. The investigation notes many of those arrested lack criminal convictions and profiles at least one detainee who self-deported after citing health concerns and crowded conditions.