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Legal representatives acting for a producer from Chicago's WGN television station who was temporarily detained by federal agents last week describe the event as "something that should concern and horrify every person in this nation".

Details of the Detainment

Debbie Brockman, a American national and station staff member, was taken into custody on Friday by federal agents during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement action in Chicago's Lincoln Square neighborhood. Footage from the scene show the producer being pushed down by officers before she is restrained and put in a vehicle.

At the moment, a government spokesperson claimed 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 their employee had been freed from detention and that no charges had been filed against her.

Attorney's Reaction

In a statement issued by attorneys representing Brockman on earlier this week, her legal team disputed the government's account. They stated they "adamantly deny any claim that she attacked anyone" and that "She was the one who was physically attacked by federal agents on her way to work" on the date in question.

Her attorneys say that at the time of the arrest, Brockman was "not performing in any professional capacity as an employee for the station" but that she was just "heading 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 forcibly held on Foster Avenue," the statement adds. "As this occurred, bystanders on the street began filming the event and inquired her her name."

The release indicates that she informed the onlookers her name and that she was employed at WGN, in the hopes that "someone would notify her employer so coworkers would know that she would not be coming at work that day", her lawyers said.

Consequences and Next Steps

Based on her legal team, Brockman was kept in government detention for about several hours before being freed.

"The individual has not been charged with any crimes and she intends to explore all legal avenues open to her to uphold her entitlements and hold the federal authorities accountable for their actions," the release notes.

"Brad Thomson, one of her attorneys, commented in the release: "When armed, covered, government officers are taking American nationals off the street as they walk to work and throwing them in non-descript cars, you can only conceive what these agents must be prepared to do to our foreign-born residents and individuals who choose to speak out against them."

"Ms Brockman was taken to the ground, struck, handcuffed, and her pants were lowered exposing her uncovered skin," the lawyer said. "No one should be handled like that in this city, in this country or any other place in the globe."

ICE, the federal agency, and the US Customs and Border Protection did not provide a prompt reply to requests for comment from the media.