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Attorneys acting for a journalist from Chicago's local TV network who was briefly held by federal agents last week describe the incident as "something that should concern and frighten every person in this country".

Particulars of the Detainment

The journalist, a US citizen and WGN employee, was taken into custody on the weekend by federal agents during an ICE operation in Chicago's Lincoln Square neighborhood. Footage from the location show the producer being pushed down by officers before she is handcuffed and put in a vehicle.

At the time, a government spokesperson stated that Brockman "hurled items at an official vehicle" and was "placed under arrest for assault on a federal law enforcement officer".

Later on Friday, the television station confirmed that Brockman had been released from federal custody and that no accusations had been pressed against her.

Legal Team's Response

In a news release issued by attorneys acting for Brockman on Tuesday, her legal team disputed the government's account. They declared they "adamantly deny any allegation that she assaulted anyone" and that "She was the one who was physically attacked by officers on her way to work" on the date in question.

Her attorneys say that at the time of the detainment, the journalist was "not performing in any official role as an staff member for WGN" but that she was just "heading to the bus stop as part of her morning commute when she was attacked by Border Patrol agents.

"The individual, who is a American citizen native to the US, was violently detained on a city street," the statement adds. "As this occurred, individuals on the street began recording the incident and inquired her her name."

The release indicates that she told the onlookers her name and that she was employed at WGN, in the hopes that "a person would inform her workplace so coworkers would know that she would not be arriving at work that day", her attorneys said.

Consequences and Legal Action

According to her lawyers, Brockman was kept in federal custody for about several hours before being released.

"She has not been charged with any offenses and she intends to explore all legal options open to her to uphold her entitlements and hold the federal authorities accountable for their conduct," the release notes.

"Brad Thomson, one of her attorneys, commented in the statement: "If equipped, masked, government officers are taking American nationals off the street as they walk to work and placing them in unmarked vehicles, you can only imagine what these officers must be willing to do to our immigrant neighbors and individuals who dare to protest against them."

"The journalist was taken to the ground, battered, handcuffed, and her pants were lowered revealing her bare buttocks," Thomson stated. "No one should be handled like that in this city, in this country or any other place in the globe."

Immigration authorities, the federal agency, and the border agency did not provide a prompt reply to inquiries from news outlets.