Court orders ICE to provide relief for 22 people unlawfully detained in early days of Trump’s second term and to identify all foreign nationals who have been subjected to warrantless arrests since June
CHICAGO — Today a federal judge ruled that the 2022 Castañon Nava consent decree, which enforces federal limits on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers’ ability to arrest people without warrants or probable cause, will be extended until February 2, 2026.
ICE officials had suggested that they were no longer bound by the agreement, despite clear language that it was still in force, and evidence of continuing violations has mounted rapidly in recent weeks as the Trump administration has deployed hundreds of federal agents and military equipment into Chicagoland communities.
The National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) and Roger Baldwin Foundation of ACLU, Inc. (ACLU of Illinois) in March 2025 filed motions to enforce the Castañon Nava consent decree on behalf of 26 individuals who were detained by ICE without warrants or probable cause during the early weeks of the second Trump administration.
Individuals who were awarded relief through the ruling include 11 people detained in the Chicago area who were subjected to warrantless arrests in their neighborhoods or vehicles, and 11 people who were arrested in an ICE raid at a restaurant in Liberty, Missouri. The judge ordered ICE to lift any conditions of their release, reissue the Nava Warrantless Arrest Policy nationwide, and certify that all officers who violated the consent decree have been re-trained. The judge also ordered ICE to produce to plaintiffs the names, A-numbers, and arrest documents for all individuals arrested without warrants since June in the Northern District of Illinois, and to provide that same reporting monthly going forward.
“The court’s decision recognizes the scope and gravity of the constitutional violations the federal immigration enforcement operations have wrought on Chicagoans, both citizens and immigrants alike, as was so graphically perpetrated during the South Shore apartment building raid,” said NIJC Associate Director of Litigation Mark Fleming, co-counsel in the case. “The court emphasizes that ensuring ICE has probable cause to make an arrest is more important than ever in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s Vasquez Perdomo racial-profiling decision. This decision gives us tools to hold DHS and ICE accountable.”
“Today’s decision makes clear that DHS and ICE – like everyone else – must follow the Constitution and the law. The federal government’s reckless practice of stopping, harassing and detaining people – and then finding a justification for the action must end. The Trump administration’s destructive mass deportation scheme is not a reason to toss aside bedrock constitutional principles, disregard federal law or court orders. We look forward to vigorously enforcing this agreement moving forward,” said ACLU of Illinois Deputy Legal Director Michelle García, co-counsel in the case.