Midway Blitz Is Over, but ICE Is Still Quietly Targeting Chicago Immigrants — Especially at Court

Dario Quevedo Marquez, a Venezuelan immigrant, went to a South Side courthouse last week for a hearing over a misdemeanor battery charge.

But on April 15, as Quevedo Marquez left the Branch 35 & 38 courthouse, 727 E. 111th St., federal immigrant agents arrested him. His wife, Daymelis Martinez, said she tried to ask agents in Spanish why they were taking him.

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While the chaotic raids of this fall’s Operation Midway Blitz have faded, federal agents continue to arrest immigrants in the Chicago area, sometimes with legally questionable tactics.

One of those tactics: targeting noncitizens at court buildings, like what happened to Quevedo Marquez. These arrests violate a state law and a county judge’s order that bans civil immigration arrests without warrants at local courthouses, officials said.

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While reports of federal immigration enforcement seemed to slow at the start of the year, recent weeks have seen more reports of people being arrested and federal agents being spotted in the city and suburbs, including near courthouses, organizers said.

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Illinois passed the Court Access, Safety, and Participation Act in December, outlawing civil arrests by federal agents in courthouses in the state. In December, the Trump administration sued Illinois over the law. The case is pending in federal court.

But since the start of April, immigration agents have entered Cook County courthouses or used courthouse property to try to make arrests at least seven times, taking at least three people, Hendrickson said in a statement.

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Agents have routinely been handed copies of a court order banning civil arrests at courthouses when attempting to enter, according to the Public Defender’s Office.

Still, immigration agents detained Quevedo Marquez after his court appearance Wednesday.

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On April 8, immigration agents also tried to enter the Pullman courthouse and arrested at least two people who appeared in court outside the building, Hendrickson said. Reports of a possible third arrest that day remain unconfirmed.

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Meanwhile, calls to the Family Support Network for reports of immigration agents have slightly increased recently compared to the first three months of 2026, said Brandon Lee, communications director for the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.

But there are nowhere near the number of reports being made as during Operation Midway Blitz, Lee said.

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While it is hard to tell immediately whether DHS is changing tactics, recent arrests seem to show federal agents are making more targeted arrests than during Midway Blitz, Vargas said.

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Still, federal officials are more often detaining noncitizens as they go through immigration proceedings and show up at check-ins, routine appointments or court hearings for detention, advocates said.

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