President Donald Trump’s Justice Department is suing Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle for allegedly interfering with federal immigration enforcement as his administration embarks on a mass deportation campaign.
The federal lawsuit filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Chicago claims sanctuary policies in Illinois that keep local authorities from cooperating with the deportation effort are “exacerbating” a crisis at the U.S. southern border.
Pritzker, Johnson and other leaders have vowed to uphold the state and city’s sanctuary status, meaning local authorities won’t assist federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement in tracking down immigrants without legal status.
The Justice Department claims Illinois leaders have been “minimally enforcing — and oftentimes affirmatively thwarting” federal investigations, resulting in “countless criminals being released into Chicago who should have been held for immigration removal from the United States.” They want a court order barring state and local protections for immigrants.
“This national crisis underscores the vital importance of “[e]nforcing our Nation’s immigration laws,’” the suit states. “This action seeks to put an end to one State’s efforts to impede the Federal Government from doing that.”
Immigrants without legal status have not accounted for a disproportionate number of crimes compared to the rest of the population, numerous studies have shown.
The federal government is arguing state law and ordinances at the county and city level “are designed to and in fact interfere with and discriminate against the Federal Government’s enforcement of federal immigration law in violation of the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution.”
Pritzker said the state’s TRUST Act, which prohibits local law enforcement from assisting with immigration enforcement, “has always been compliant with federal law and still is today.”
“Unlike Donald Trump, Illinois follows the law,” Pritzker said in a statement. “Illinois will defend our laws that prioritize police resources for fighting crime while enabling state law enforcement to assist with arresting violent criminals. 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. We look forward to seeing them in court.”
At a Loop news conference, Preckwinkle said “we’ll defend ourselves and hope for success in the court system… We’re gonna fight back. We will pursue every legal opportunity to defend the programs that we believe in and defend our values.”
A spokesperson for the city Law Department said they were reviewing the suit. Johnson has pledged to maintain the city’s sanctuary policies.
The lawsuit also named Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling and Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart as defendants. CPD officials declined to comment. Dart’s office couldn’t immediately be reached.
‘They want to disrupt’
Justice Department officials signaled soon after Trump’s inauguration that they’d go after state and local governments thought to be undermining federal immigration laws. Chicago has long been a target of the president, who since his first run for office has painted the Democratic-controlled city as a haven for crime.
Ald. Andre Vasquez (40th), who chairs the City Council’s Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights, said it’s “not surprising” that Trump would filed a lawsuit that essentially seeks to compel Chicago Police officers to do what the sanctuary city ordinance prohibits: That is, cooperate with President Donald Trump’s mass deportations of illegal immigrants, beginning with those with criminal records.
“To have the Department of Justice do this tracks with how they want to disrupt and be chaotic. It’s something we all should have been anticipating — and some of us did. Trump’s gonna weaponize the federal government by any means that he can,” Vasquez said.
“I don’t think this is the last of the focus we’re gonna see on the city of Chicago. But, we are blue city and a blue state. Whether President Trump wants to weaponize that isn’t gonna change our resolve. Standing up for working families is the city we are and will remain”
Other than generating a few quick headlines and scaring even more people, Vasquez said he believes the lawsuit is baseless and will accomplish absolutely nothing.
“I believe that what we are doing isn’t obstructing anything because we’re not blocking anyone from doing anything. The fact that we’re not interacting isn’t the same thing as blocking,” Vasquez said.
“We’re trying to make sure all Chicagoans are safe — whether they’re citizens or undocumented, they’re still Chicagoans first.”
This is a developing story. Check back soon for more.