“The conduct of officials in Chicago and Illinois minimally enforcing—and oftentimes affirmatively thwarting—federal immigration laws over a period of years has resulted in countless criminals being released into Chicago who should have been held for immigration removal from the United States,” the lawsuit alleges.
The Trump administration has filed a lawsuit against the city of Chicago, claiming that it has repeatedly tried to “thwart” immigration enforcement initiatives.
According to The Associated Press, the lawsuit also names the state of Illinois as a co-defendant.
Other defendants include Cook County and the Cook County Sheriff’s Office.
“The conduct of officials in Chicago and Illinois minimally enforcing—and oftentimes affirmatively thwarting—federal immigration laws over a period of years has resulted in countless criminals being released into Chicago who should have been held for immigration removal from the United States,” the lawsuit alleges.
Attorneys for the Trump administration further claim that Chicago’s sanctuary-type policies violate federal law by broadly prohibiting “local governments from sharing immigration information with federal law enforcement officials,” and by preventing immigration enforcement officers from identifying “individuals who may be subject to removal.”
In response to Trump’s attacks on Chicago, Mayor Brandon Johnson said that the city will remain welcoming and open to immigrants.
“The safety and security of Chicago residents remains the priority,” Johnson said in a statement on Thursday. “Chicago will continue to protect the working people of our city and defend against attacks on our longstanding values.”
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker also said that his state has always complied with federal law.
“Unlike Donald Trump, Illinois follows the law,” Pritzker said in a statement. “Instead of working with us to support law enforcement, the Trump Administration is making it more difficult to protect the public, just like they did when Trump pardoned the convicted January 6 violent criminals.”
Other sanctuary cities are already planning to take action against the administration’s alleged overreach. Portland, Oregon, along with a collection of other cities and counties, is purportedly preparing to file a lawsuit challenging Trump’s latest wave of immigration policies.
“Memos from the U.S. Department of Justice have instructed the agency’s staff to investigate and prosecute state and local officials in sanctuary jurisdictions who do not actively assist in immigration enforcement,” Portland Mayor Keith Wilson said in a statement. “That threat was realized this week when the federal government filed a lawsuit challenging sanctuary laws in the City of Chicago and the State of Illinois.”
Portland City Council President Elana-Pirtle Guiney said that the Trump administration is trying to force sanctuary cities to choose between local law enforcement and federal grants.
“The federal administration is jeopardizing critical programs that our community depends upon, and we are filing this lawsuit because we are being asked to choose between our authority to use our local funding for local policing and these federal grants that fund critical programs,” she said. “This should not be a binary; this should not be a choice.”
Sources
Portland joins lawsuit against Trump administration’s sanctuary city crackdown
Trump administration sues Chicago in latest crackdown on ‘sanctuary’ cities
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