Chicago Protesters Struck in Head by Pepper Balls; Agents' Policy Compliance Questioned
Sep 19, 2025·Location: Broadview Il

Federal ICE and Border Patrol agents used tear gas and pepper balls to disperse protesters outside a Chicago-area ICE detention facility during demonstrations against immigration enforcement operations. Protesters have included a pastor and two Democratic congressional candidates, with at least three arrests and clashes between agents and demonstrators. Video reviewed by NBC 5 Investigates shows a protester struck in the back of the head and face by a pepper ball during a September 26 demonstration, and another protester's back was covered in bruises from apparent pepper ball strikes. The incidents have raised questions about whether agents violated Border Patrol's own use-of-force policy, which restricts targeting the head, neck, spine or groin with compressed air launchers, as well as a judge's standing order limiting use of chemical agents.
Sources
Related incidents
- Three siblings, including 14-year-old, detained in Texas for filming ICE arrestOct 8, 2026 · Brownsville, TX
- New York teen thrown to the ground, bloodied and abandoned by agentsOct 8, 2026 · NY
- School staffer tackled and handcuffed by agents in MinneapolisOct 8, 2026 · Minneapolis, MN
- Ecuadorian father held nearly 10 months in ICE detention, describes violent arrest, harsh conditionsOct 8, 2026 · Maple Grove, MN
- Teen U.S. citizen detained after agents break his car windowOct 7, 2026 · OR
- Phoenix man unlawfully deported to Equatorial Guinea, beaten and missing after speaking to pressOct 7, 2026 · Tucson, AZ