A 27-year-old Hispanic man who spray-painted pro-ICE graffiti and swastikas on several buildings in Little Village with links to Palestinian and immigrant communities has pleaded guilty to four counts of hate crime, court records show. Phillip Dominguez, 39, received concurrent sentences of 24 months probation on each count from Judge Michael McHale.
Prosecutors said Dominguez targeted four locations in the neighborhood on July 19 of last year: the district office of Illinois State Senator Celina Villanueva in the 2500 block of South Central Park, and three locations in the 2700 block of West Cermak, the Chicago Liberation Center, Latino Progresando, and a produce store called La Fruteria.
At each location, prosecutors alleged Dominguez spray-painted swastikas, in some cases directly over pro-Palestinian murals, flags, or messages supporting immigrants. Surveillance footage allegedly captured Dominguez defacing the door of Latino Progresando and a mural at La Fruteria that had displayed the words “Free Palestine.”
The following night, on July 20, around 1:30 a.m., prosecutors said Dominguez returned to La Fruteria and added the phrase “ICE RULES” near the same mural.
Dominguez turned himself in to CPD after detectives released surveillance images of the person responsible for the graffiti.
Prosecutors said Dominguez admitted to spray-painting all four sites and told detectives he was angry about issues related to Palestine and immigration. Detectives said they confirmed his admissions through surveillance footage and cell phone location data that allegedly placed him near the scenes at the times of the incidents.
All four sites are known for supporting immigrant rights or Palestinian causes, according to prosecutors. Villanueva’s office window included her name and fliers for pro-Latino initiatives, prosecutors said. Latino Progresando provides legal aid for immigrants, and pamphlets on interactions with ICE were visible outside La Fruteria.
While hate crime incidents have grabbed headlines and some public officials have claimed hate incidents are on the rise in Chicago, CPD records show hate crime reports are down sharply in recent years.
CWB Chicago reported this month that hate crime reports in 2026 are down 30% compared with the first half of last year and 54% from the same period in 2024, with declines across every major protected class. Reports surged dramatically in June 2020 as protests and riots followed the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer. Cases continued rising for several years, reaching a record 303 reports in 2023.
That year’s surge was driven largely by religion-based hate crimes as the Israel-Hamas war sparked pro-Palestinian demonstrations that some people used as cover to target Jewish residents and institutions.
Against that backdrop, the Chicago City Council unanimously approved the “CHI vs. Hate” ordinance in December 2023. The measure created a system allowing residents to report “hate incidents” through 311 even if the conduct did not meet the legal definition of a hate crime.
Supporters said the ordinance would make it easier for victims to come forward while giving the city a better understanding of bias-related incidents that might otherwise go unreported. Even with those expanded reporting efforts in place, hate crime reports have fallen across every major protected class.
Race-based hate crimes have dropped from 170 cases in 2023 and 123 last year to 33 during the first half of this year, according to CPD. Hate crimes based on sexual orientation have fallen from a high of 64 cases in 2024 to 24 through June 30. Religion-based hate crimes have also declined, falling from 89 reports last year to 16 during the first six months of this year.
Hate crimes based on gender identity have also decreased. After averaging about nine cases annually since 2019 and peaking at 11 incidents in 2024, the city recorded three cases during the first half of this year.
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