Only 16 of Over 600 ICE Arrests in Chicago Labeled 'High Public Safety Risks,' Court Documents Show

Federal court documents show that, out of 607 people detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Chicago, only 16 were classified by the government as a "high public safety risk," despite weeks of intensified enforcement under Operation Midway Blitz.

The list, released as part of ongoing litigation over potentially unlawful arrests, also identified one person as a national security risk and another as a "foreign criminal," but provided no additional details.

The figures, reported by CBS News, come as a federal judge considers ordering the release of hundreds of detainees after finding that many arrests may have violated an existing court order that restricts warrantless detentions. The court-required list includes each person's name, country of citizenship, and whether they remain in custody, were deported, or left the country voluntarily.

According to the government's own assessments, 78% of the 607 detainees were categorized as posing a low public safety risk, while only 7% were considered high risk — and not all in that category had criminal histories. Just 2.6% of those detained were found to have prior offenses that the government deemed significant enough to fall under the "high public safety risk" classification.

Eric Balliet, a retired Homeland Security Investigations special agent with 25 years of experience, told CBS News that the numbers contradict repeated statements by the Trump administration that operations in Chicago were targeting "the worst of the worst:"

"It confuses the public. It certainly instills a sense of fear," he said. "To go after violent criminals, that's a lot of work. That's a lot of effort. That's a lot of time, and candidly, from the people I've talked to, the department and the agency doesn't want to expense that time, that strategic and operational planning to actually get the worst of the worst"

The arrests are now at the center of a broader legal challenge. On November 12, U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey Cummings ruled that hundreds of ICE arrests carried out in Chicago and across Illinois may have violated the Castañon Nava Consent Decree, a 2022 order that bars federal agents from detaining individuals without warrants or probable cause. The judge found that DHS and ICE had repeatedly violated the decree, and that field offices were incorrectly told it had been canceled.

Cummings ordered that 615 people detained between June 2 and October 7 be released into Alternatives to Detention programs on bond by November 21. The court also mandated that the government produce a full list of all people detained by ICE and Border Patrol during Operation Midway Blitz — believed to exceed 3,000 arrests — including risk assessments and country-of-origin information.

In a FOX News interview, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino said more redeployments were imminent and suggested Chicago could again become a target. He also signaled plans for more arrests, saying, "If he releases those 650, we're going to apprehend 1,650 on the streets of Chicago."

Judge Cummings emphasized that the court's role is not to shape immigration policy but to ensure compliance with existing orders. "There will be nothing for me to do if arrests made during this Operation Midway Blitz are within the decree," he said.