CHICAGO, IL - An Illinois father who is grieving the loss of his daughter blames Governor JB Pritzker's migrant policies for the death of his daughter, saying that they led to devastating consequences.
"My daughter was taken. We are separated, I will never see her again," Joe Abraham said on "Fox & Friends," as he described the loss of his 20-year-old daughter, Katie.
"She got death; I got a life-sentence," he said. Katie Abraham and a friend were waiting at a stoplight in January when police said their car was struck at high speed by a Guatemalan man that was allegedly in the United States illegally, Fox News reported. Authorities said he was suspected of drunk driving. Katie died at the scene, while her friend later died at the hospital.
Abraham criticized Pritzker's silence on the case, and how his family is demanding tougher action from state leaders. He called Pritzker's response "defeating." In response, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said it is ramping up arrests of criminal migrants in the state of Illinois, with federal officials saying that the raids are being carried out in Katie's memory.
"Every day, the men and women of ICE and the other federal partners that are with us in Chicago, we honor Katie by going out there and getting these criminal aliens off the street," Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said in a statement.
In a statement on X, the Department of Homeland Security linked its Illinois operations to the state's sanctuary policies, arguing they allowed the criminal migrants to roam the streets freely. Pritzker denied those claims, accusing federal authorities of using the operation to instill fear in the community rather than reduce crime.
"Once again, this isn't about fighting crime. That requires support and coordination — yet we've experienced nothing like that over the past several weeks. Instead of taking steps to work with us on public safety, the Trump Administration's focused on scaring Illinoisians," he wrote on X.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson made similar arguments saying the city received "no notice of any enhanced immigration action by the Trump administration" and that he remains opposed to ICE's actions over due process concerns.
He also raised concerns about ICE's history, saying the agency in the past wrongfully detained American citizens and violated their rights. Abraham rejected those arguments, saying that with a proper immigration system, the migrant who killed his daughter could have been filtered out, and his child might still be alive.
Lyons said ICE remains committed to operations in Chicago and across the country. "We are out there arresting criminal aliens, known suspected terrorists, and gang members that are ruining our community," Lyons said. "The men and women of ICE are going to stay in Chicago, and we're going to stay at all the major cities across the United States to ensure that we remove this public safety threat from our neighborhoods."
"My daughter was taken. We are separated, I will never see her again," Joe Abraham said on "Fox & Friends," as he described the loss of his 20-year-old daughter, Katie.
"She got death; I got a life-sentence," he said. Katie Abraham and a friend were waiting at a stoplight in January when police said their car was struck at high speed by a Guatemalan man that was allegedly in the United States illegally, Fox News reported. Authorities said he was suspected of drunk driving. Katie died at the scene, while her friend later died at the hospital.
Abraham criticized Pritzker's silence on the case, and how his family is demanding tougher action from state leaders. He called Pritzker's response "defeating." In response, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said it is ramping up arrests of criminal migrants in the state of Illinois, with federal officials saying that the raids are being carried out in Katie's memory.
"Every day, the men and women of ICE and the other federal partners that are with us in Chicago, we honor Katie by going out there and getting these criminal aliens off the street," Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said in a statement.
In a statement on X, the Department of Homeland Security linked its Illinois operations to the state's sanctuary policies, arguing they allowed the criminal migrants to roam the streets freely. Pritzker denied those claims, accusing federal authorities of using the operation to instill fear in the community rather than reduce crime.
"Once again, this isn't about fighting crime. That requires support and coordination — yet we've experienced nothing like that over the past several weeks. Instead of taking steps to work with us on public safety, the Trump Administration's focused on scaring Illinoisians," he wrote on X.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson made similar arguments saying the city received "no notice of any enhanced immigration action by the Trump administration" and that he remains opposed to ICE's actions over due process concerns.
He also raised concerns about ICE's history, saying the agency in the past wrongfully detained American citizens and violated their rights. Abraham rejected those arguments, saying that with a proper immigration system, the migrant who killed his daughter could have been filtered out, and his child might still be alive.
Lyons said ICE remains committed to operations in Chicago and across the country. "We are out there arresting criminal aliens, known suspected terrorists, and gang members that are ruining our community," Lyons said. "The men and women of ICE are going to stay in Chicago, and we're going to stay at all the major cities across the United States to ensure that we remove this public safety threat from our neighborhoods."
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Comments
2025-09-12T16:59-0400 | Comment by: Dawn
Illinois has had YEARS of opportunity to clean up their streets, particularly those in crime-ridden Chicago. They've had YEARS to work with federal immigration agents, the FBI, and other agencies to get criminal illegals AND just criminals in general off the streets and make the state safer. But they haven't. They haven't done anything but make the streets safer for criminals. Enough is enough, and even Illinois and Chicago residents are saying so!
2025-09-12T18:33-0400 | Comment by: Paul
Do Pritzker or Johnson ever listen to the words they say? They both just sat there and straight faced lied. And they wonder why Trump is going over their heads!
2025-09-12T19:24-0400 | Comment by: Thomas
Both JP and Brian have massive egos. And if you look up the word narcissist personality disorder (NPD), According to DSM5 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, a mental health condition characterized by a grandiose sense of self-importance, an excessive need for admiration, a lack of empathy, and a belief in being unique or special.
2025-09-12T19:40-0400 | Comment by: James
This man is correct!