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The Trump administration sued officials in Illinois, Chicago and Cook counties over policies that restrict cooperation with federal immigration enforcement authorities, accusing them of obstructing immigration crackdowns.
This is the first major challenge from the administration against democratically-led cities and states that opposed the use of local law enforcement to help the federal government enforce the civil immigration law. Trump officials have repeatedly criticised these policies, often picking out Chicago, where the administration recently implemented immigration enforcement projects.
The Justice Department says it plans to be offensive against what is called sanctuary city. This is a term that applies widely to places with policies designed to limit cooperation or involvement with federal immigration enforcement measures.
“The challenged provisions of the laws of Illinois, Chicago and Cook County have the purpose and effect of making federal immigration officials more difficult and intentionally obstruct the ability of federal immigration officials to carry out liability in those jurisdictions,” the lawsuit said. states.
The department has argued that state and local laws violate the constitutional superiority clause, and that federal law takes precedence over state law.
“The hegemony clause prevents Illinois, Chicago, Cook County and their officials from imposing the federal government’s ability to enforce laws enacted by Congress or to take action commissioned by the Constitution. It’s banned,” the lawsuit reads.
The Justice Department is asking federal judges to declare the law unconstitutional and temporarily block it while the lawsuit is underway.
Challenging provisions include state laws that prohibit Illinois law enforcement officials from engaging with federal officials in enforcement of civil immigration laws. However, state law still requires Illinois officials to work with federal officials on criminal law enforcement.
The Justice Department argues that the law “thwarts the ability to take enforcement action against illegal aliens by preventing the federal government from regulating immigration and assisting state law enforcement officials in federal immigration enforcement.” It’s.
In a statement, the state “defines law enforcement agencies prioritize police resources to combat crime in order to help arrest violent criminals.” Ta.
“The bipartisan Illinois Trust Act, signed into law by a Republican governor, has always been federal law and is still the case today,” Pretzker said. “We look forward to seeing them in court.”
Cook County Commissioner Committee President Toni Preckwinkle said the county is “still committed to being a fair and welcoming community for all residents.”
“Our policies reflect our long-standing values and ensure that local resources are used to promote public safety and community trust,” Democrat Preckwinkle stated. It is stated in. “We will review the complaints and respond accordingly.”
CNN contacted the Mayor of Chicago’s Brandon Johnson office for comment.
This story has been updated with additional comments.
Hannah Rabinowitz, Kara Devlin and Brad Parks of CNN contributed to this report.
