Broadview Police Chief Thomas Mills says he was verbally attacked by ICE agent; Mayor Katrina Thompson criticizes ICE in letter
There are new claims of heightened tensions between ICE agents at the Broadview, Illinois immigration processing facility and local police.
Broadview Police Chief Thomas Mills told the ABC7 I-Team he was verbally attacked by an ICE agent during a protest outside of the facility earlier this month.
"I've been doing this job a long time now, but I was shocked," Mills said. "I was shocked. I've never been spoken to by a fellow law enforcement officer in such a way."
Mills said that confrontation comes on top of requiring 75% of his department's manpower now being used for crowd control outside of the ICE processing facility in the west suburban city.
"But again, I'm a leader of a department," Mills said. "I know my officers are looking at me for guidance and leadership, and I had to ensure that I would stay calm, and not engage in unprofessional behavior."
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Mills then detailed that as he was walking across a skirmish on September 12, he endured multiple expletives by an ICE agent, calling him a coward, accusing him of neglecting his duties during protests that got physical.
Mills also told the I-Team about an incident earlier in the week where a pedestrian was hit by a truck near the ICE facility.
"Allegedly an ICE agent struck someone and continued on into their location, and during that, while trying to gather information, there was pepper spray release with my officers right there," Mills said. "They felt the effects of that pepper spray it altered their vision. They were coughing I was on the phone with them and they had to leave the area so they can decontaminate themselves."
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Now, Broadview Mayor Katrina Thompson has issued a blistering letter to ICE excoriating their actions, saying in part, "Broadview police officers are routinely being exposed to ICE agents' tear gas volleys, forcing them out of action until they recover. Broadview firefighters and ambulance personnel are being exposed. Nearby residents are being exposed..." and, "Beleaguered Broadview residents are begging for relief from your center's siege of our neighborhood."
Congressman Jesús "Chuy" García weighed in Friday on potential conflict between local law enforcement and ICE.
"You cannot have just come in and act as a cowboy doing whatever they want, running roughshod over people. You need to treat people with dignity and respect and that's not happening," Rep. García said.
The investigation into the pedestrian struck by a truck outside of the ICE facility is ongoing. ICE has not responded to the I-Team's requests for comment.
