State and local law enforcement are being put in harm’s way with Illinois’ migrant sanctuary policies, the Illinois Sheriffs Association says.
Association Executive Director Jim Kaitschuk said the National Sheriffs Association put out a note to their state partners that there are 700,000 Immigration and Customs Enforcement administrative arrest warrants that are active. But, that doesn’t matter in Illinois.
“Illinois law enforcement is precluded and prohibited from participating in any activity that is solely related to civil enforcement,” Kaitschuk told The Center Square.
Illinois law, through the TRUST Act and The Way Forward Act, prohibits state and local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration officials if a civil detention order is the only thing ICE has against someone.
While Kaitschuk said they can cooperate when there are criminal orders, law enforcement not being able to cooperate with civil warrants can still cause security concerns.
“Unfortunately things do go wrong, right, and then we’re in a situation where you may not know anything about what’s occurring,” Kaitschuk said. “So, we’re kind of blind in those cases.”
Daily immigration arrests nationwide haven’t been comprehensively published, but some estimates are more than 21,000 immigration detentions across the country since Jan. 20, when President Donald Trump took office.
Last week, state Sen. Omar Aquino, D-Chicago, told a group of immigration advocates that Illinois will stand strong.
“You are not going to come into our house and just try to take people and separate families in this state,” Aquino said. “People have rights. They are human rights.”
Illinois law also limits ICE from using local county detention facilities. Kaitschuk said the state’s sanctuary policies prohibit police from even knowing whether they have a suspected illegal immigrant in their jail.
“And [ICE] they’re having to go to people’s houses and at the point in time, the problem then is that you may be subjecting people then that weren’t involved in any other criminal activity other than being here … not legally and open them up to being subjected to ICE at that point in time in that residence, as opposed to if they were at the jail, where they wouldn’t have been,” Kaitschuk said.
Illinois and Chicago officials are on the other side of the U.S. Department of Justice in litigation over migrant sanctuary policies. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is due in front of the U.S. House Oversight Committee Wednesday to discuss the city’s migrant sanctuary policies.
