Residents say ICE used force in Prospect Heights; speakers accuse local officers of failing to intervene

Multiple Prospect Heights residents used the council’s public-comment period on Jan. 12 to recount a Dec. 22 encounter they said involved federal immigration agents using physical force and to accuse local police of failing to intervene.

“I was at the Paul Valkyia Plaza when an ICE agent physically attacked me, yanking me out of my vehicle and snapping me to the ground,” resident Eileen said, describing bruises and a hospital visit. “They told me if I called a lawyer I’d be locked up; if I stayed quiet they released me to a hospital.”

Edith Enriquez said she witnessed masked agents use “excessive, aggressive, and violent force” and said she heard Prospect Heights officers express willingness to assist ICE. “I did see Prospect Heights Police Department arrive on the scene to help, but not to help us,” Enriquez said. She told the council she recorded officers saying they were happy to assist with ICE operations.

Jennifer Abonce Alcantar said the enforcement activity has created “fear, instability and a breakdown of trust” in the community, and described one family that hesitated to call 911 when a child had a seizure because of fear of police presence. “No parent should have to choose between their child's life and their fear of law enforcement,” she said.

The speakers urged the council to take concrete steps, including publishing immigration resource information on the city website, issuing a public statement about enforcement activity, and holding officials accountable. Several asked for clearer policing policies and training on the Illinois Trust Act, which they said prohibits local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement in certain circumstances.

Brad Dodie, another resident, strongly criticized federal agents and urged the council to direct local officers to protect residents. His remarks included broad and severe characterizations of federal enforcement tactics that were not substantiated in the meeting record.

Council members did not provide a substantive public response to the allegations during the public-comment period. The mayor called a short executive session later in the meeting under an exemption cited as “2C1,” and the council returned to open session at 7:50 p.m. with no formal action reported on executive-session items.

The claims made in public comment—including Eileen’s account of being physically pulled from her vehicle and witnesses’ statements that officers encouraged ICE cooperation—were presented as first-person testimony and community reporting. The council record for the Jan. 12 meeting does not include a city or police department denial, independent evidence presented at the meeting, or a Council vote addressing the allegations.

What happens next: speakers asked the city to publish resources and to clarify local policy on cooperation with federal immigration authorities. The council did not vote on those requests during the meeting; the record shows it entered executive session and reconvened without reporting an outcome on that topic.