'Not how any of us want to live': Judge orders Border Patrol boss Bovino to court daily to report use of force
A visibly displeased federal judge on Tuesday ordered Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino to start coming to court every day to detail any confrontations his immigration enforcement officers have had with the public, a move that comes as allegations have mounted that agents are indiscriminately throwing tear gas in Chicago neighborhoods and using inappropriate force against residents and reporters.
During a remarkable hourlong session with Bovino on the witness stand under oath Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis also instructed the 30-year border patrol veteran to get his own body-worn camera and send her every use-of-force report — and accompanying bodycam footage — filed since “Operation Midway Blitz” began nearly two months ago.
The judge spoke at one point in somber tones about a fracas in the Old Irving Park neighborhood over the weekend where agents tackled angry residents and deployed tear gas on a quiet street as children were preparing to march in a Halloween parade to a nearby grammar school.
“These kids, you can imagine, they’re sense of safety was shattered on Saturday, and it’s going to take a long time for that to come back — if ever,” Ellis told Bovino, who was sitting on the witness stand in his military-green Border Protection uniform and duty belt. “That’s not how any of us want to live. I know you wouldn’t want to live that way.”
Ellis did most of the talking during the hearing, with Bovino keeping his gaze on the judge and answering mostly with a polite “Yes, ma’am,” spoken in his slight North Carolina drawl.
In the end, Ellis said she expected Bovino to uphold his duty to execute the laws of the nation while also respecting people’s constitutional rights.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/28/judge-to-question-bovino-tear-gas/
Go, Judge Ellis! You tell him!
= new reply since forum marked as read
