Obama Judge Limits Use Of Riot Control Tools In Anti-ICE Protests

A pair of federal rulings in Illinois this week dealt a major blow to law enforcement and President Donald J. Trump’s effort to restore order amid ongoing unrest in the state.

On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis, an Obama appointee, issued a temporary restraining order sharply curbing the ability of federal officers to use riot control tools — including tear gas, flash-bangs, and less-lethal munitions — when responding to protests and riots across Illinois.

Under Ellis’s order, federal agents cannot disperse crowds unless “exigent circumstances” exist, and must issue at least two verbal warnings before deploying any crowd control measures. The order even prohibits officers from pushing or tackling demonstrators unless they pose an “immediate threat” or are being lawfully arrested.

The ruling stemmed from a lawsuit filed by activist journalists who claimed they were “manhandled” by federal officers during protests against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in the Chicago area.

Justice Department attorneys strongly objected, warning the court that the ruling ties the hands of federal agents tasked with protecting federal property and personnel from violent mobs.

Adding to the tension, another federal judge — this one appointed by President Joe Biden — issued a separate order blocking President Trump’s plan to deploy National Guard troops to Chicago to defend federal facilities and ICE officers.

Judge April Perry, of the Northern District of Illinois, halted the deployment pending a second hearing scheduled for Friday, according to The Hill. The ruling temporarily prevents the White House from reinforcing ICE and federal agents amid escalating violence that has already damaged multiple government buildings.

The State of Illinois and City of Chicago, both controlled by Democrats, sued to stop the deployment — a move that federal officials have blasted as a dangerous political stunt.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D), who has long clashed with the Trump administration over immigration enforcement, has openly encouraged mass protests. Earlier this year, Pritzker told a group of Democratic activists,

“Never before in my life have I called for mass protests, for mobilization, for disruption. But I am now. These Republicans cannot know a moment of peace.”

On Thursday, Pritzker cheered the rulings against the federal government, calling Trump’s enforcement of immigration law an “unconstitutional invasion of Illinois.”

“Donald Trump is not a king — and his administration is not above the law,” Pritzker wrote on X. “Today, the court confirmed what we all know: there is no credible evidence of a rebellion in the state of Illinois. And no place for the National Guard in the streets of American cities like Chicago.”

But Trump adviser Stephen Miller fired back, accusing Pritzker of “encouraging violence” by obstructing ICE operations and defending lawless protesters.

“Pritzker is saying that if ICE officers are performing their duties in Chicago it is an incitement to violence against them,” Miller wrote Thursday on X. “What is the correct term to describe this?”

Miller also condemned Judge Perry’s decision, writing,

“Federal judge: protecting ICE officers from violent attack will only further motivate the violent attackers.”

Meanwhile, despite the judicial restrictions, Illinois State Police were forced to intervene on Friday after protesters outside the ICE facility in Broadview turned violent, attempting to breach a police line protecting federal property. Officers arrested multiple individuals at the scene.

The twin rulings underscore the growing divide between federal law enforcement’s mandate to maintain order and progressive judicial and political resistance determined to obstruct those efforts — even as violence escalates in cities like Chicago.

As President Trump continues his second-term push to restore law and order across the country, Illinois is shaping up to be a flashpoint in the ongoing struggle between the rule of law and left-wing activism.