Cook County’s controversial illegal immigration policy, which critics say paved the way for a suspect in a deadly drunken driving crash to bond out of jail and disappear, may very well violate federal law, the nation’s immigration director said in a letter to County Board President Toni Preckwinkle.
“This ordinance undermines public safety in Cook County,” U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director John Morton wrote in a Jan. 4 letter to Preckwinkle. “In addition to undermining local public safety, the [ordinance] may also violate federal law.”
Preckwinkle, a Democrat, said she supported a proposed amendment to the detainer ordinance — sponsored by three Republicans commissioners — that would at least allow the county sheriff to open the lines of communication with federal immigration officials. But it was unclear what that would achieve.
The chief sponsor, Commissioner Tim Schneider, said he would seek to fine-tune his ordinance and open the door for the county to again honor the detainers.
As for Morton, the head of federal immigration agency outlines in his letter — provided by Preckwinkle’s office Thursday — how the county ignored 268 detainers issued for jail inmates, many of whom were arrested locally for “serious and violent offenses like assault of a police officer.”
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- Preckwinkle Slams Critics Of County Policy On Detaining Immigrants (chicago.cbslocal.com)
- Don’t Cave to ICE Lies by icirr (socialactions.net)
