Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has created an “accountability” commission in response to “abuses” committed by federal agents deployed to Chicago by the Trump administration.
Pritzker on Thursday signed Executive Order 2025-06 to establish the Illinois Accountability Commission (IAC), an independent board tasked with “capturing and creating a public record of the conduct of federal law enforcement agents and recommending actions to hold the federal government accountable as they continue conducting military-style operations in Chicago, collar counties, and other areas throughout the state.”
The commission will prepare and deliver a comprehensive report to the governor following public hearings and consultations with local officials, residents, journalists, experts, and community organizations.
“The federal government is pushing the boundaries of their authority to terrorize our communities while disregarding all legal and moral accountability in the process. We will not meet intimidation with fear — we will meet it with truth,” Pritzker said in a press release.
“We are going to show the public — here in Chicago, the State of Illinois, across the nation, and around the world — exactly what is going on.”
“We will create a detailed record, and that record will reflect reality. Once this all ends, I believe there will be people of good faith who will review what the Commission has recorded and will demand answers and accountability.”
Pritzker has said the immigration raids across Chicago have been “marked by excessive force, masked agents in unmarked vehicles, military-style raids, the use of chemical irritants, and reports of violent conduct by federal agents.”
The move is Pritzker’s latest effort to push back against the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration in Chicago.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other federal agencies in September 2025 launched an operation in the Chicago area dubbed Operation Midway Blitz.
According to federal officials, nearly 550 arrests were made in the first two weeks of the operation across Chicago and greater Illinois.
The federal agencies say many targets are undocumented individuals with criminal records, final removal orders, or associated with criminal gangs.
The raids have sparked strong backlash in Chicago: Residents say they are living in fear, especially families in mixed-status households.
Trump’s push to send the military into Democrat-run cities despite fierce resistance from mayors and governors has unleashed a whirlwind of lawsuits and overlapping court rulings.
U.S. District Judge April Perry on Wednesday blocked the deployment of National Guard troops to the Chicago area until the case has been decided either in her court or the U.S. Supreme Court intervenes. Perry had already blocked the deployment for two weeks through a temporary restraining order.
Newsmax Wires contributed to this report.
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