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Legal representatives representing a journalist from the city of Chicago's WGN television station who was briefly held by government officers last week characterize the event as "something that should concern and frighten each individual in this nation".

Details of the Arrest

The journalist, a American national and WGN employee, was arrested on the weekend by federal agents during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation in a North Side Chicago area. Footage from the scene depict Brockman being forced to the ground by two agents before she is handcuffed and placed in a vehicle.

At the moment, a homeland security official stated that the individual "threw objects at border patrol's car" and was "placed under arrest for attacking an officer".

Subsequently that day, the television station announced that Brockman had been released from federal custody and that no accusations had been filed against her.

Attorney's Response

In a news release issued by lawyers acting for the journalist on Tuesday, her representatives disputed the government's account. They declared they "strongly refute any claim that she assaulted anyone" and that "Brockman was the one who was physically attacked by officers on her way to work" on the date in question.

Her lawyers explain that at the moment of the detainment, Brockman was "not performing in any professional capacity as an staff member for WGN" but that she was just "heading to the transit point as part of her morning commute when she was confronted by federal officers.

"Brockman, who is a American citizen native to the US, was violently detained on Foster Avenue," the release continues. "As this happened, bystanders on the street began recording the incident and inquired her her name."

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

Consequences and Next Steps

Based on her lawyers, the journalist was held in federal custody for about several hours before being freed.

"The individual has not been charged with any crimes and she plans to pursue all legal avenues available to her to vindicate her rights and hold the federal authorities accountable for their conduct," the statement adds.

"Brad Thomson, a legal representative, added in the statement: "If armed, covered, government officers are taking American nationals off the street as they walk to work and placing them in non-descript cars, you can only imagine what these officers must be willing to do to our foreign-born residents and individuals who dare to protest against them."

"The journalist was forced down, battered, restrained, and her trousers were lowered exposing her bare buttocks," Thomson stated. "Not anyone should be treated like that in this city, in this nation or any other place in the world."

ICE, the Department of Homeland Security, and the border agency did not provide a prompt reply to inquiries from news outlets.