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Attorneys representing a producer from the city of Chicago's local TV network who was temporarily detained by federal agents last week describe the event as "an occurrence that ought to alarm and frighten every person in this nation".

Particulars of the Arrest

The journalist, a American national and WGN employee, was taken into custody on Friday by federal agents during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation in Chicago's Lincoln Square neighborhood. Videos from the scene show the producer being forced to the ground by officers before she is restrained and placed in a vehicle.

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

Subsequently that day, the television station announced that their employee had been freed from detention and that no charges had been pressed against her.

Attorney's Reaction

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

Her lawyers say that at the time of the arrest, the journalist was "not performing in any professional capacity as an staff member for WGN" but that she was just "walking to the transit point as part of her daily travel when she was attacked by federal officers.

"Brockman, who is a American citizen born in this country, was violently detained on a city street," the statement adds. "As this happened, individuals on the street began recording the incident and asked Ms Brockman her name."

The statement says that she informed the onlookers her name and that she was employed at WGN, in the hopes that "someone would inform her employer so colleagues would know that she would not be coming at work that day", her attorneys stated.

Aftermath and Next Steps

Based on her lawyers, the journalist was kept in government detention for about seven hours before being freed.

"The individual has not been charged with any offenses and she plans to explore all legal options open to her to uphold her entitlements and hold the federal authorities accountable for their actions," the statement adds.

"One attorney, one of her attorneys, added in the release: "When armed, covered, government officers are taking US citizens off the street as they walk to work and throwing them in non-descript cars, you can only imagine what these officers must be prepared to do to our foreign-born residents and individuals who choose to speak out against them."

"The journalist was taken to the ground, battered, restrained, and her trousers were lowered exposing her bare buttocks," Thomson said. "Not anyone should be treated like that in this metropolis, in this country or anywhere else in the world."

ICE, the Department of Homeland Security, and the border agency did not immediately respond to requests for comment from news outlets.