Latest news with #TrustAct
Chicago Tribune
5 days ago
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Federal judge dismisses Trump administration lawsuit challenging Illinois, Chicago sanctuary policies
A federal judge in Chicago on Friday blocked the Trump administration's challenge to policies in the state of Illinois, the city of Chicago and Cook County that limit the powers of state and local police in assisting federal law enforcement on immigration-related matters. The ruling comes as the Trump administration has ramped up mass deportation efforts targeting noncitizens living in the U.S. without legal permission, particularly in big cities that have sanctuary laws like Chicago, where activities from federal immigration agents have been met with protests. In her ruling on Friday, U.S. District Judge Lindsay Jenkins dismissed the lawsuit in its entirety, saying the U.S. Department of Justice lacked standing, though she allowed the department to amend its complaint. The case centered around the 10th Amendment, which addresses state and federal powers. 'The Sanctuary Policies reflect Defendants' decision to not participate in enforcing civil immigration law—a decision protected by the Tenth Amendment and not preempted by (the federal Immigration and Nationality Act),' Jenkins wrote. 'Finding that these same Policy provisions constitute discrimination or impermissible regulation would provide an end-run around the Tenth Amendment. It would allow the federal government to commandeer States under the guise of intergovernmental immunity—the exact type of direct regulation of states barred by the Tenth Amendment.' A spokesperson for the Department of Justice did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Among the arguments made by the Justice Department when it filed its lawsuit earlier this year was that the sanctuary policies violated the U.S. Constitution's supremacy clause, which the department argued 'prohibits Illinois, Chicago, Cook County, and their officials from obstructing the Federal Government's ability to enforce laws that Congress has enacted or to take actions entrusted to it by the Constitution.' The lawsuit specifically went after the state's 2017 Trust Act, signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker's predecessor, Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner. The law generally prohibits state and local law enforcement from getting involved in deportation efforts with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or other federal policing agencies dealing with immigration matters. While the Trust Act prevents state and local law enforcement from assisting the federal government with regular immigration enforcement, it allows coordination when there is a federal criminal warrant involved. Chicago's sanctuary city ordinance bans official cooperation between local law enforcement and federal deportation authorities, while ensuring immigrants living without legal permission can use city services. The lawsuit also takes on a Cook County statute that bans ICE agents from the county jail and other facilities unless they have a criminal warrant unrelated to immigration. Chicago's sanctuary designation has existed since Mayor Harold Washington signed an executive order in 1985, but it was adjusted after Trump took office the first time in 2017. Now, the intent is to make sure immigrants in the country without legal permission can still report crime without fearing deportation, while depriving the feds of a key resource — local police. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Pritzker this year have testified separately before President Donald Trump's Republican allies in Congress to defend their sanctuary policies. The Democratic governor's visit to Washington happened last month when he defended the policies before a House committee while pointing at congressional Republicans and Democrats for using the issue to try to score political points rather than enacting comprehensive immigration reform. On Friday, Pritzker praised the ruling, saying it showed Illinois has 'always been and still is compliant with federal law.' 'Illinois ensures law enforcement time and energy is spent fighting crime — not carrying out the Trump Administration's unlawful policies or troubling tactics,' Pritzker spokesman Matt Hill said in a statement. 'As the grandchild of Ukrainian refugees, the Governor's personal story shows how immigration is central to America's story, economy, & culture. He told it to Congress when he laid out how Illinois follows the law and would like the feds to follow suit.' The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois also applauded the ruling, saying the court 'was correct to reject the Trump Administration's lawsuit and to allow public officials in Illinois and Chicago to follow our policies that prioritize local public safety and welfare over federal civil immigration enforcement.'
CBS News
5 days ago
- Politics
- CBS News
Federal judge dismisses Trump administration lawsuit over Illinois sanctuary laws
A U.S. district court judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Trump administration against the state of Illinois and multiple jurisdictions over their sanctuary laws. Illinois signed the Trust Act into law in 2017 under Republican governor Bruce Rauner, instructing state and local law enforcement not to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in cases of civil immigration enforcement activities. The act does not prohibit law enforcement from cooperating with ICE for cases involving a criminal warrant or other court order. In the decision, the judge granted Illinois' motion to dismiss on the basis that the Trump administration "lacks standing to sue them with the respect to the Sanctuary Policies." The judge also dismissed a lawsuit against the Cook County Board of Commissioners because it's not a separate entity from Cook County in such a way to make it suable. The lawsuit was dismissed in its entirety without prejudice, and the Trump administration can amend its complaint and file again by a separate, undisclosed date, the ruling said. The judge said if an amended lawsuit is not filed by that date, this one will convert to being dismissed with prejudice. Gov. JB Pritzker responded to the lawsuit's dismissal on social media, posting, "Illinois just beat the Trump Administration in federal court. Their case challenging the bipartisan TRUST Act was dismissed — unlike the President, we follow the law and listen to the courts." In a further statement from the governor's office, Pritzker added, "This court ruling shows what we already knew: Illinois' law has always been and still is compliant with federal law. Illinois ensures law enforcement time and energy is spent fighting crime -- not carrying out the Trump Administration's unlawful policies or troubling tactics." The White House has not issued a statement or released any comment in reaction to the court's decision.
Boston Globe
12-07-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
‘Dragnet warrantless surveillance': Advocates raise concerns over license plate tracking database
'This is hugely concerning from a privacy and civil liberties perspective, particularly in communities that have some welcoming city or Trust Act law on the books that restricts information sharing pertaining to immigration,' said Kade Crockford, director of the Technology for Liberty Program at the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts. Advertisement In a statement, Flock Safety said that departments must opt-in to share any data from their cameras with the broader network. Departments can choose to keep their data to themselves, share with specific other agencies, set geographic limits, or contribute to a national database, Flock Safety chief executive Garrett Langley Advertisement 'Each city should lay out acceptable and unacceptable use cases for [the system], as determined by the laws and values of its jurisdiction,' Langley wrote. 'And law enforcement agencies should regularly conduct audits to ensure all users are complying with the letter and spirit of those policies.' The Flock Safety data was acquired by the ACLU of Massachusetts following a public records request and shared with the Globe. It shows that 88 police departments in Massachusetts requested information from it over the past 12 months. It is unclear how many of those departments have cameras that share data nationwide, and Flock Safety did not respond to a request for that information. Michael Bradley, executive director of the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association, described automatic plate readers as a 'proven public safety tool' typically governed by departmental policies that restrict access to authorized personnel and limit data retention. 'They help locate stolen vehicles, identify vehicles associated with missing or endangered individuals, and support investigations involving violent crime, organized theft, and more,' Bradley wrote in an email. 'When properly used, ALPR systems allow law enforcement to act swiftly and effectively, often in time-sensitive situations, without intruding on the public's civil liberties.' Unlike at least 16 other states, including Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire, Massachusetts has no law specifically regulating the use of ALPR systems. But the expansion of large-scale ALPR networks has prompted efforts to regulate the technology on Beacon Hill. In February, Watertown Representative Steven Owens filed legislation that would prohibit agencies from disclosing ALPR data, except as required by a judicial proceeding, and bar police from using plate recognition systems to track activity protected by the First Amendment. Advertisement The legislation would also set a 14-day limit for retaining ALPR data, unless it is needed for a specific criminal investigation. The legislation has been referred to the Joint Committee on Transportation. The ACLU of Massachusetts has endorsed the legislation, saying it strikes the right balance between recognizing the public safety utility of ALPR systems and protecting driver privacy. 'We have compromised, essentially,' Crockford said. 'It's our view that ideally, this information shouldn't be collected at all.' Holly Beilin, Flock Safety's director of communications, said the company supports 'the goals of legislation that would strengthen privacy protections and look forward to working with the legislature on this important issue.' The 88 agencies listed in the Flock dataset cover municipalities across the state, and range from urban agencies like the Springfield and Lowell police departments to suburbs and small towns. In Bellingham, a Norfolk County town of 17,000 people, the police department signed a deal to have Flock install cameras in 2023, Police Chief Ken Fitzgerald said in an interview. Fitzgerald said one perk of the system is that Flock operates the cameras and maintains the images they capture, cutting down on the administrative burden for the department. 'The nice portion of this for us, I suppose, is that government is not taking pictures or storing pictures of anyone,' he said. 'This is a private company.' That same privatization is worrisome for civil liberties advocates, who have voiced concerns that Flock is not accountable to the Massachusetts public. 'It is dragnet warrantless surveillance that targets all motorists,' Crockford said. 'Not people suspected of criminal activity, but anyone.' In 2020, the Advertisement But the Supreme Judicial Court cautioned that if a larger network of cameras existed, that could track a driver's movements in more detail, it could trigger constitutional protections against warrantless searches. 'In declining to establish a bright-line rule for when the use of ALPRs constitutes a search, we recognize this may bring some interim confusion,' Justice Frank M. Gaziano wrote in the decision. 'We trust, however, that as our cases develop, this constitutional line gradually and appropriately will come into focus.' Five years later, that focus remains elusive, legal analysts said. The SJC has not clarified its ruling, as more sophisticated ALPR networks have reached the market, and there is no Massachusetts legal challenge poised to raise those questions. Dan Dolan, a criminal defense lawyer and professor at New England School of Law, said the SJC's ruling was based on the narrow facts of that case, where a small set of cameras only tracked movements over the Bourne and Sagamore bridges. 'There was certainly, to me, no question they said those devices may constitute some sort of constitutional violation, depending on the amount of data being collected,' Dolan said.
Chicago Tribune
20-06-2025
- Chicago Tribune
Law & Order column: Lake County State's Attorney will not ask about individual's immigration status
In the wake of increased national immigration enforcement by federal agencies, Lake County State's Atty. Eric Rinehart issued a statement recently saying that his office will not ask about an individual's immigration status, especially people who are crime victims. Rinehart's office issued the statement on June 13, saying in part that LCSAO will not share immigration status information with federal authorities unless presented with a valid warrant. 'The Lake County State's Attorney's Office is dedicated to serving all residents of Lake County and upholding justice for EVERY victim — regardless of immigration status — with a trauma-informed approach built on the principles of trust and safety,' Rinehart said. 'It is imperative that victims and witnesses feel safe to report crimes so that perpetrators don't go unpunished. We won't have safe and healthy communities if people are afraid to contact the police or cooperate with the prosecutor's office.' Rinehart said his office operates under the Trust Act, which was signed into law by former Gov. Bruce Rauner and limits cooperation between state law enforcement agencies and federal immigration. His office, Rinehart, said, will not ask about or require immigration documentation and does not keep records of immigration status. * Lake County Sheriff's Office and other area detectives concluded an investigation that resulted in the arrest of a Park City man on drugs and weapons charges. Marital D. Hayes, 39, of the 700 block of Chestnut Avenue, was taken into custody after police conducted a search at his home and found crack cocaine and other drugs along with a loaded firearm. As a convicted felon, Hayes cannot legally possess a gun, police said. He was charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance and illegal possession of a firearm. The Special Investigations Group, a federally funded sheriff's office task force, began investigating Hayes after developing information that he was selling drugs. Detectives working undercover said that Hayes was selling heroin laced with fentanyl and crack cocaine. Gurnee and Park City police officers aided the investigation. Prosecutors are seeking to have Hayes detained until trial, police said. * Lake County authorities have identified the man who was struck and killed by a vehicle this week in Gurnee near Six Flags amusement park. The deceased was identified as Richard Bennett, 59, of Gurnee. Bennett was struck by a vehicle as he walked along Washington Street near Illinois Route 21 at around 10:05 p.m. Monday. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The motorist who struck Bennett remained on the scene and is cooperating with the investigation, police said. Police said they are not sure why Bennett was walking along the road but they think he lived in the area. * The Lake County Sheriff's Department Auxiliary Unit was recently recognized by the county board for its volunteerism and commitment to public safety. Last year, auxiliary deputies contributed more than 13,000 hours of community service, which the sheriff's office said saved taxpayers more than $700,000. The auxiliary deputies perform a number of services, including providing support services like traffic direction at accident and crime scenes, as well as assisting in missing persons and evidence searches. Auxiliary deputies undergo 145 hours of training. 'Every year, our Auxiliary Deputies go above and beyond, whether aiding in emergencies or fostering community spirit at events,' Sheriff John Idleburg said. 'Their commitment, professionalism, and compassion profoundly enhance public safety, community resilience, and we are very grateful for their service.'
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pritzker to defend Illinois' sanctuary policies before congressional committee Thursday
It's the eve of one of the biggest moments of JB Pritzker's political career. In made-for-TV theater, the Illinois governor is in Washington to face the Republican-led House Oversight Committee. The hearing topic: sanctuary polices for undocumented immigrants. For Pritzker, long rumored to have his eye on a future White House run, the stakes are enormous. Pritzker's political future: Where things stand after passage of Illinois budget 'We're gonna see Donald Trump's Congressional Republicans really put on a show. And this is going to be full of political theatrics. They are going to try to put people on the spot, but I think Governor Pritzker is going to have a steady hand, he's going to do what he has always done, which is put the people of Illinois first,' said Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton. Governors of New York and Minnesota will also join Pritzker on the hot seat. Republicans are going after Sanctuary Laws, saying they protect criminals — and they're likely to focus on the Trust Act. This Illinois law enables people to report crime and call emergency services regardless of their immigration status. To prep, Pritzker retained a Washington, D.C. law firm. A source says the billionaire paid for their services out of his own pocket. He's also getting an assist from a former White House counsel to President Joe Biden. More than 15 arrested in Tuesday ICE protests; ICE tactical team on 'stand by' I think he'll be well prepared. He knows how aggressive the Republicans will be based on what they did with Mayor Johnson, but as you probably noticed, they kind of get ridiculous at some point,' said Congressman Raja Krishanmoorthi. In March, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson was hauled before Congress when Republicans took aim at Sanctuary City mayors. The attacks were relentless. 'This is why you have 6 percent approval ratings because you suck at answering questions,' said Nancy Mace. 'When there's trust between these city residents and police, undocumented immigrants come forward to report crimes to local law enforcement and provide information that helps police solve those crimes,' Johnson responded. Back from Capitol Hill, mayor talks Congressional questioning, CTU contract, Dept. of Ed. Republican Congressman Darin LaHood, rumored to be considering a run for U.S. Senate or Illinois governor, is expected to join Thursday's hearing to question Pritzker. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
