DHS says officers in Chicago fired at driver who 'rammed the law enforcement vehicle' Whitney Wild, Michelle Watson, CNNOctober 4, 2025 at 11:24 PM 0 Protesters face off with federal agents after DHS says it fired at driver who 'rammed the law enforcement vehicle' in Chicago on Saturday.
- - DHS says officers in Chicago fired at driver who 'rammed the law enforcement vehicle'
Whitney Wild, Michelle Watson, CNNOctober 4, 2025 at 11:24 PM
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Protesters face off with federal agents after DHS says it fired at driver who 'rammed the law enforcement vehicle' in Chicago on Saturday. - Reuters
Federal agents shot at a woman after she rammed a law enforcement vehicle in Chicago, according to the Department of Homeland Security, amid escalating anti-ICE protests and the Trump administration's efforts to clamp down on unrest in Democratic-led cities.
At least 10 cars rammed and boxed in officers, Tricia McLaughlin, DHS assistant secretary, said in a post on X.
"Agents were unable to move their vehicles and exited the car. One of the drivers who rammed the law enforcement vehicle was armed with a semi-automatic weapon," McLaughlin said in her post. "Law enforcement was forced to deploy their weapons and fire defensive shots at an armed US citizen who drove herself to the hospital to get care for wounds."
The armed woman was recently named in an intelligence bulletin last week "for doxing agents and posting online," McLaughlin said. The woman has not been named, and her condition was unclear Saturday.
Law enforcement also deployed gas canisters at the protesters, according to footage from Reuters. The footage shows protesters screaming, running, and shielding themselves. "This is Bryant Park, this is not a war zone," one woman told a journalist.
No officers were seriously hurt in the incident, said McLaughlin, who also accused local police in Chicago of leaving the scene.
"Pritzker's Chicago Police Department is leaving the shooting scene and refuses to assist us in securing the area," McLaughlin said. "There is a growing crowd and we are deploying special operations to control the scene."
The Chicago Police Department said they "responded to the scene to document the incident" and "maintain safety and traffic control for all living and working in the area," but aren't involved in the investigation.
McLaughlin did not provide details on which agency the officers who opened fire are part of.
CNN has reached out to Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker for comment.
Trump to deploy National Guard
Police officers responded to the 3900 block of S. Kedzie Avenue Saturday morning "for a call of a person shot," the department said in an emailed statement to CNN Saturday.
The incident comes after weeks of President Donald Trump pledging to send federal law enforcement and armed troops to Chicago. On Saturday, the White House announced the president had authorized 300 members of the Illinois National Guard to "protect federal officers and assets" in Chicago.
"Amidst ongoing violent riots and lawlessness, that local leaders like Pritzker have refused to step in to quell, President Trump has authorized 300 national guardsmen to protect federal officers and assets," White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told CNN. "President Trump will not turn a blind eye to the lawlessness plaguing American cities."
US Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin, ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, decried the move, saying, "Terrorizing families with midnight raids and military troops in our streets is writing a shameful chapter in our nation's history" in a statement.
"This President is not intent on fighting crime. He is intent on spreading fear."
It's a strategy the president first executed in Los Angeles and Washington, DC and is now vowing to repeat in other Democrat-led cities across the country.
Chicago's governor says he will not call up the National Guard. Before the deployment was officially announced, Pritzker said, "This morning, the Trump Administration's Department of War gave me an ultimatum: call up your troops, or we will. It is absolutely outrageous and un-American to demand a Governor send military troops within our own borders and against our will."
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said she is sending "more special operations" to the scene following the shooting incident.
"Today in Chicago, members of our brave law enforcement were attacked—rammed and boxed in by ten vehicles, including an attacker with a semi-automatic weapon. I am deploying more special operations to control the scene. Reinforcements are on their way. If you see a law enforcement officer today, thank them," Noem posted on X.
When reached by CNN, DHS declined to clarify what groups the "special operations" deployment would entail, citing safety concerns. CNN has reached out to the White House for comment.
In response to the incident and others in Chicago, the FBI said it and its federal partners will "continue to aggressively pursue charges and investigate violence against officers, obstruction of justice, and destruction of federal property."
CNN's Alejandra Jaramillo and Zoe Sottile contributed to this report.
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