Crystal Paul
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cplhouse.bsky.social
Crystal Paul
@cplhouse.bsky.social
Investigative Editor, Block Club Chicago - The Watch

Formerly Illinois Answers Project, Seattle Times.

Raised on the road. Found home in South Side Chicago.
Chris Madel, a Republican, announced he is ending his candidacy for Minnesota governor. Madel said he “cannot support the national Republican stated retribution on the citizens of our state, nor can I count myself a member of a party that would do so.”
www.nytimes.com/live/2026/01...
Update from Talya Minsberg
www.nytimes.com
January 26, 2026 at 4:43 PM
"As they moved around the city, the night grew colder, with temperatures feeling around 3 degrees below zero about 9:30 p.m. — as those doing the unsheltered count began their work — and dropping to around 14 degrees below zero about 1 a.m."

blockclubchicago.org/2026/01/23/a...
As Bitter Cold Settles In, Chicago Tallies Homeless Population
City workers, volunteers and homeless services providers fanned out across the city to conduct the annual point-in-time count of people living unhoused, as some sought shelter to escape dangerously lo...
blockclubchicago.org
January 23, 2026 at 3:28 PM
Reposted by Crystal Paul
The data goes back to 2000, encompassing thousands of internal misconduct complaints, and will be continuously updated as pending investigations are brought to a close, Chicago Inspector General Deborah Witzburg said.
New OIG data portal details misconduct patterns among CPD officers, units
The Office of Inspector General now offers an interactive data portal that allows anyone to see which Chicago Police Department officers are connected to misconduct claims.
trib.al
January 16, 2026 at 2:37 AM
Latest on Krystal Rivera:

Baker's application to join the tactical team was initially rejected due to his disciplinary record... A 2nd application was approved after he sustained more complaints.

chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdog...

📝 @ctoner.bsky.social, Peter Nickeas, @schuba.bsky.social
Chicago police brass had rejected troubled cop's move to elite unit before he fatally shot partner
Chief of Patrol Jon Hein ultimately approved Officer Carlos Baker’s transfer despite having denied his request for the move less than a year earlier because of “discipline" problems.
chicago.suntimes.com
January 15, 2026 at 3:57 PM
"The short answer is yes," he said. "Yes, your tax dollars are going to this funding, but understanding the government operates in a budget deficit, they spend far more money than they bring in. It's really our kids that end up paying off a lot of this debt."

www.cbsnews.com/amp/minnesot...
What is the cost of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation in Minnesota?
It's a question many people have been asking: What is the cost of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation in Minnesota? WCCO was able to get some numbers.
share.google
January 14, 2026 at 9:17 PM
While homicides and most violent crime decreased in Chicago in 2025...domestic violence climbed. Domestic fatal shootings specifically rose by 50%.

Martina Mosby was one of 63 people killed in a domestic violence homicide last year.

✍️ @minabloom.bsky.social

blockclubchicago.org/2026/01/13/c...
Chicago’s Domestic Homicides Surged Last Year Even As Overall Violent Crime Dropped
Martina Mosby was the first of at least 63 people killed in domestic homicides in 2025. Experts say the increase is in part due to federal funding cuts to victim services programs.
blockclubchicago.org
January 13, 2026 at 3:05 PM
“Defendants describe this assault as ‘immigration enforcement,’ the reality is that uniformed, military-trained personnel...have rampaged for months through Chicago and surrounding areas lawlessly stopping, interrogating, and arresting residents”
blockclubchicago.org/2026/01/12/c...
Chicago, Illinois File Lawsuit Over Feds' 'Unlawful And Violent' Operation Midway Blitz Tactics
The city and state allege that President Donald Trump's administration has violated Tenth Amendment rights regarding state sovereignty in the government's "organized bombardment" of the area.
blockclubchicago.org
January 12, 2026 at 10:41 PM
Reposted by Crystal Paul
Families told the Sun-Times they saw immediate changes in their children when their parents were detained, ranging from physical changes to emotional outbursts.
Operation Midway Blitz will leave lasting mark on children of detained parents, experts say
www.wbez.org
January 2, 2026 at 10:36 PM
At least 3,800 children under age 18, including 20 infants, have been booked into immigration detention since Trump took office.

1300 of them held longer than 20 days.

www.themarshallproject.org/2025/12/17/c...
ICE Threw Thousands of Kids in Detention, Many For Longer Than Court-Prescribed Limit
Former immigration staffers argue ICE is choosing to detain families for prolonged periods to speed deportations and compel them to leave.
www.themarshallproject.org
December 31, 2025 at 3:53 PM
Some excellent reporting here:

DHS has compared the experiences of immigration agents in Chicago to 'Sicario' -a movie in which the FBI takes down a brutal drug cartel.

But those allegations "have not withstood the harsh light of the federal court system"

www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/30/c...
Rioters? Agitators? Immigration agents’ claims against US citizens mostly fall apart in court.
Time and again, Donald Trump’s immigration agents claimed horrific crimes at the hands of protesters in Chicago. Those allegations of abuse did not withstand the scrutiny of judicial review.
www.chicagotribune.com
December 30, 2025 at 11:50 PM
Block Club reporters were there every day as immigration agents teargassed, shot, violently arrested & separated Chicagoans from their families.

Bolstered by hours of video analysis & hundreds of documents, "Chicago Under Siege" is the record of what happened.
blockclubchicago.org/2025/12/30/c...
Chicago Under Siege: How Operation Midway Blitz Changed Our City
Federal agents arrested thousands during an unprecedented immigration mission in Chicago. They also killed a man, shot a woman five times, tear-gassed a 1-year-old, separated families and brutalized p...
blockclubchicago.org
December 30, 2025 at 7:29 PM
40%+ of all people arrested were citizens of Mexico

Most weren’t charged with a crime. Many have already been deported.

Though ICE has said it rarely detains unaccompanied children, its records show kids as young as 4 and 6 were arrested in Illinois this year.

blockclubchicago.org/2025/12/23/i...
ICE's Illinois Arrests During Trump's Crackdown Were Among Nation's Highest
Most people arrested in Operation Midway Blitz didn't have criminal records, according to ICE's own data. Here are four other findings our investigative team discovered.
blockclubchicago.org
December 23, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Hector Leon Perez was detained on Oct. 18. By noon the next day, he was on a plane.

His family didn't know where he was; lawyers scrambled to file a special petition for his release.

This has become a common story since ICE effectively revoked bond in June.

blockclubchicago.org/2025/12/18/l...
Lawyers Race To Free Detained Immigrants – Before They’re Flown Away
During its immigration crackdown, the Trump administration has hurried to arrest, move and even deport thousands of people before they appear in court. But more than 100 in Illinois have won their rel...
blockclubchicago.org
December 18, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Border Patrol is back.

"Law enforcement agencies in the area have been alerted that Bovino and about 200 Border Patrol agents have arrived in Chicago for more enforcement action, sources said."

blockclubchicago.org/2025/12/16/b...
Border Patrol Boss Bovino Back In Chicago As Agents Target Southwest Side
Bovino and about 200 Border Patrol agents have arrived in Chicago for more enforcement action, sources said.
blockclubchicago.org
December 16, 2025 at 3:41 PM
Video shows him during a raid in Little Village saying to Border Patrol Agents "My regards for all of you and the work that you guys are doing... God bless you guys.”

At the time he was Director of Community Outreach at Little Village Chamber of Commerce.

blockclubchicago.org/2025/12/03/l...
Little Village Chamber Leader Thanked Border Patrol Agents As They Arrested Neighbors, Video Shows
Little Village, an enclave for Mexican Americans and immigrants, was heavily targeted during Operation Midway Blitz. After Block Club uncovered the video, the chamber said the employee was no longer e...
blockclubchicago.org
December 3, 2025 at 2:47 PM
[Judge Ellis] repeatedly found testimony by Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino... not credible. Bovino was evasive, either giving “cute” answers to attorney’s questions or outright lying, the judge said in her [233-page] ruling.

blockclubchicago.org/2025/11/25/f...

📝 @minabloom.bsky.social
Feds Repeatedly Lied And Misled The Public During Chicago Immigration Crackdown, Federal Judge Rules
CHICAGO — For two months, federal immigration agents unleashed "indiscriminate" force on peaceful protesters and others across the Chicago area — and
blockclubchicago.org
November 25, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Immigration experts say the federal government has no comprehensive system to track minors who are separated from their parents upon detention or deportation.

Some...have been taken in by relatives or trusted caretakers. Others could end up in foster care.

www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/22/c...
Her dad was taken by immigration agents. Now a 12-year-old girl fears she’s lost her only living parent.
The separation illustrates a tragic consequence of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown: children left behind after a parent is detained or deported.
www.chicagotribune.com
November 22, 2025 at 10:08 PM
Proud of the team at @illinoisanswers.bsky.social

"Making it in Chicago" won a Chicago Journalists Association Award for *Innovative Storytelling*

We all poured so much into the project to tell these important stories: makingitinchicago.illinoisanswers.org

chicagojournalists.net/2025/11/19/c...
CJA Names 2025 Winners - Chicago Journalists Association
The Chicago Journalists Association announces its award winners of the 2025 Dorothy Storck Award and Sarah Brown Boyden Awards.
chicagojournalists.net
November 21, 2025 at 2:54 PM
"Her son cried for his father and refused to eat the food served in jail. He lost weight. She said that other women who were incarcerated with them bought the boy ramen noodles from the commissary so he wouldn’t go hungry."

www.propublica.org/article/chic...

✍️ @melissa-sanchez.bsky.social
What the Trump Administration’s Videos From a Chicago Immigration Raid Don’t Show
Detained and deported Venezuelans tell their stories of what happened when immigration agents raided their apartment building.
www.propublica.org
November 19, 2025 at 4:46 PM
Feds used chemical weapons on protesters at least 49 times across 18 incidents since Oct 1.

And at least 30 times after a judge placed restrictions on its use.

Contrary to federal claims about attacks on agents, most of these incidents appear to involve nonviolent protesters or bystanders.
Several Chicago newsrooms spent two months collecting and analyzing evidence of ICE & Border Patrol's use of tear gas and pepper spray in Chicago.

They found that agents deployed chemical agents nearly 50 times. Most uses occurred after a judge ordered federal agents to restrict their use.
Feds Used Chemical Agents Dozens of Times in Chicago
An investigation by reporters from six newsrooms found that agents used chemical irritants nearly 50 times during Operation Midway Blitz.
southsideweekly.com
November 19, 2025 at 3:57 PM
"Of the 16 arrestees with criminal histories — or about 2.6% of the 614 people — five involved domestic battery, two were related to drunken driving, and one allegedly had an unidentified criminal history in another country."
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/14/o...
Only 2.6% on list of 614 ‘Operation Midway Blitz’ arrestees had criminal histories, DOJ records show
Meanwhile, the other 598 people on the list had no listed criminal history at all.
www.chicagotribune.com
November 14, 2025 at 9:39 PM
Happy to announce I've joined the @blockclubchi.bsky.social investigative team 'The Watch' as investigative editor.

I look grumpy in the photo, but I'm stoked to work with a dope team of journalists & at an outlet with such deep roots in Chicago communities.

blockclubchicago.org/2025/11/14/i...
Investigative Editor, Partnerships Pro And Sales Associate Join Block Club Chicago Team
Crystal Paul joins The Watch team as an investigative editor, Christine Schmidt joins our partnerships team as an associate and Ella Durchin joins revenue as an assistant account executive.
blockclubchicago.org
November 14, 2025 at 3:29 PM
Reposted by Crystal Paul
Officials have revealed little about what led to the arrests. State Police haven’t fulfilled records requests for incident reports. Court records don’t include many details & few of the protesters arrested have appeared in court.

@blockclubchi.bsky.social

blockclubchicago.org/2025/11/12/p...
Protesters Keep Getting Arrested At Broadview By State Police Despite Promise To Protect Free Speech
About 80 protesters have been arrested at the ICE facility since barricades went up. Protesters and legal observers say the arrests run counter to the state’s stated goals of ensuring public safety an...
blockclubchicago.org
November 12, 2025 at 2:46 PM
Found unfit for trail, people with mental illnesses are spending months in jails, waiting for room at hospitals where they can be restored to fitness.

Some of them are waiting longer than their sentences would be

Some of them have died waiting...

@meredithnewman.bsky.social
🎨 Kailey Ryan
November 12, 2025 at 2:37 AM