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By Dan Gooding
Associate News Editor
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The mother of a young woman who was killed in a drunk-driving crash in Illinois has called out the Trump administration for using her daughter’s name to promote its immigration enforcement operation in the state.
In a column in The Chicago Tribune, Katie Abraham’s mom, Denise Lorence, said that the 20-year-old would not have wanted Operation Midway Blitz to be associated with her, despite her father’s public support for the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) efforts.
“Losing a child unlocked a pain I never knew existed. Losing a child to a crime adds to the depths of despair,” Lorence wrote. “Having my child’s legacy be associated with a politically charged and controversial operation instead of the positivity and light she contributed to those within her community is simply unbearable.”
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Why It Matters
Abraham was killed in a drunk driving hit-and-run allegedly caused by an illegal immigrant, which DHS said would not have happened if he had not been allowed into the United States. The Trump administration has referenced the names of multiple victims of immigrant crime in its messaging on immigration enforcement, saying that tougher actions are a way to honor those victims.
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What To Know
Operation Midway Blitz was launched in early September, with DHS dedicating the surge in federal agents into Chicago to Abraham’s memory. She had died in January, following the hit-and-run allegedly caused by Guatemalan national Julio Cucul-Bol.
While Abraham’s father, Joe Abraham, and his wife, Michelle Abraham, have openly supported the campaign, including appearing in a video shared in its early days, Lorence said she could no longer stay quiet about her feelings.
“The Department of Homeland Security said its immigration enforcement operation in Chicago is named in Katie’s honor. But Katie would not have wanted this,” Lorence wrote in the Tribune.
She painted her daughter as a person full of compassion and empathy, who would not have wanted to be associated with a divisive operation that has led to repeated clashes between federal agents and local officials and multiple legal challenges.
“With this compassion and empathy in mind, Katie would not want to be associated with an operation in which kids witness their parents being taken into custody on their way to or from school,” Lorence said. “She wouldn’t support scaring kids with the use of military efforts in their neighborhoods or in their apartment buildings.”
In a statement given to Newsweek via DHS, Joe Abraham said: “DHS launched Operation Midway Blitz in honor of my daughter, Katie Abraham, who was killed in Illinois by a criminal illegal alien drunk driver who should have never been in our country.
“Sanctuary policies helped kill Katie. As compassionate as she was, Katie would not sacrifice other people’s lives just for the sake of bringing in illegals. I gave my permission to conduct Operation Midway Blitz in Katie’s honor, and I stand by it.”
Seeing Chicago targeted would not have appealed to Abraham, either, Lorence wrote in the Tribune. She said her daughter avoided confrontation and tension and had never spoken out on a political agenda.
Lorence said she would not question her daughter’s father’s grief or the way it was being expressed, but that she herself was uncomfortable with an association she first learned about through friends inundating her with text messages following the DHS announcement.
“I taught Katie to advocate for herself, and as heartbreaking as it is, Katie is no longer here to advocate for herself because of a crime that took place 150 miles from Chicago,” Lorence wrote. “She cannot advocate for herself and stand up to say ‘I am not a political pawn.’ So I am here for her.”
What People Are Saying
DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in an October 1 press release: “The Trump Administration will not allow violent criminals or repeat offenders to terrorize our neighborhoods or victimize our children and innocent Americans. We will not allow sanctuary politicians or violent rioters to stop us from enforcing the law and arresting pedophiles, murderers, gang members, rapists, and domestic abusers from American communities.”
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker wrote on X on October 16: “I’ve made the message to Trump clear: We do not want you, Tom Homan, or Kristi Noem in Illinois. You do nothing but cause chaos and division."
What Happens Next
Operation Midway Blitz has resulted in at least 1,500 arrests over the past month and a half, with DHS saying many have criminal convictions or charges. Federal agents continue to work in and around Chicago to bring more into ICE custody, while local officials continue to push back against the surge in agents.
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