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Attorneys acting for a producer from the city of Chicago's WGN television station who was temporarily detained by government officers last week describe the incident as "something that should alarm and frighten each individual in this nation".

Details of the Arrest

The journalist, a American national and station staff member, was arrested on the weekend by federal agents during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation in a North Side Chicago area. Footage from the location show Brockman being forced to the ground by officers before she is restrained and put in a vehicle.

At the moment, a homeland security official claimed that Brockman "hurled items at border patrol's car" and was "detained for assault on a federal law enforcement officer".

Subsequently that day, the television station confirmed that Brockman had been freed from detention and that no charges had been pressed against her.

Attorney's Reaction

In a news release issued by lawyers representing Brockman on Tuesday, her legal team challenged 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 officers on her way to work" on the date in question.

Her lawyers explain that at the moment of the arrest, Brockman was "not acting in any professional capacity as an employee for WGN" but that she was just "heading to the bus stop as part of her morning commute when she was attacked by federal officers.

"The individual, who is a American citizen native to the US, was violently detained on Foster Avenue," the statement adds. "As this happened, individuals on the street began recording the incident and asked her her name."

The statement says that she informed the onlookers her name and that she was employed at the station, in the hopes that "someone would inform her employer so colleagues would know that she would not be arriving at work that day", her lawyers said.

Consequences and Legal Action

Based on her lawyers, Brockman was kept in federal custody for about seven hours before being freed.

"She has not been accused with any crimes and she intends to explore all legal avenues open to her to uphold her rights and ensure government accountability for their conduct," the statement notes.

"One attorney, a legal representative, added in the statement: "When equipped, masked, government officers are snatching American nationals off the street as they travel to work and throwing them in unmarked vehicles, you can only imagine what these officers must be willing to do to our immigrant neighbors and individuals who dare to speak out against them."

"Ms Brockman was forced down, struck, handcuffed, and her trousers were pulled down revealing her uncovered skin," the lawyer stated. "No one should be treated like that in this metropolis, in this nation or anywhere else in the world."

ICE, the federal agency, and the US Customs and Border Protection did not immediately respond to inquiries from the media.