Trump admin says video footage inside ICE facility at center of class action lawsuit 'cannot be produced' [View all]

Source: Law & Crime

Nov 14th, 2025, 12:12 pm


The agency synonymous with immigration enforcement may find itself in hot water after losing some key pieces of discovery in a lawsuit about conditions at an Illinois detention facility. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Justice admitted to the apparent snafu in a 10-page joint written status report on discovery.

Chief among the missing files is 13 days' worth of video footage recorded at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in the Chicago suburb of Broadview, according to the status report.

"Defendants have indicated that some video between October 19, 2025, and October 31, 2025, has been irretrievably destroyed and therefore cannot be produced on an expedited basis or at all," the filing reads. The plaintiffs, for their part, say they are "in the process of hiring an IT contractor" who will work with ICE's discovery liaison and attorneys "to attempt to work through issues concerning the missing video, including whether any content is able to be retrieved."

The missing footage will be pursued, at least in some fashion, the status report says, but the plaintiffs say the issue is not paramount. "While Plaintiffs intend to explore the issue of missing footage, Plaintiffs have communicated to Defendants that they are most concerned with obtaining the available surveillance videos as quickly as possible," the joint filing by the government and plaintiffs goes on.

Read more: https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/irretrievably-destroyed-trump-admin-says-video-footage-inside-ice-facility-at-center-of-class-action-lawsuit-cannot-be-produced-in-line-with-courts-discovery-order/