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City Council blocks bid to roll back Chicago's protections for undocumented immigrants

Push to change Chicago sanctuary city ordinance blocked; speed limit change delayed
Push to change Chicago sanctuary city ordinance blocked; speed limit change delayed 02:34

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The City Council on Wednesday blocked an effort by some of the council's more conservative alderpeople to water down Chicago's sanctuary city ordinance protecting undocumented immigrants, amid a threat from the incoming Trump administration to make the city "ground zero" for a mass deportation effort.

Alders voted 39-11 to table an effort to force a vote on an amendment proposed by Alds. Raymond Lopez (15th) and Silvana Tabares (23rd) to allow the Chicago Police Department to work with federal immigration agencies in cases where undocumented immigrants have been arrested or convicted of certain crimes.

Currently, under the Welcoming City Ordinance, Chicago police are barred police from cooperating with federal authorities in any immigration enforcement efforts.

Lopez and Tabares on Wednesday tried to use a parliamentary maneuver to force a vote on their bid to restore four so-called "carve-outs" that had been eliminated from the Welcoming City Ordinance under former Mayor Lori Lightfoot.

Under their proposal, police would be allowed to work with federal immigration authorities when someone has been arrested or convicted for:

  • gang-related activities including, but not limited to, loitering, intimidation and recruitment;
  • drug-related activities including, but not limited to, purchasing, selling, or distribution of any substance considered to be an illegal drug by the Food and Drug Administration;
  • prostitution-related activities including, but not limited to, solicitation, performance, or human trafficking of adults;
  • sexual crimes involving minors

Critics of that proposal have said it's unclear how those categories would be specifically defined, and have said the proposal would raise due process concerns by allowing police to work with federal immigration authorities in cases involving migrants arrested but not yet convicted of a crime. They said, because those categories are broad, an individual who might simply be suspected of any of those offenses could be detained, and likely would not get due process, opening the door to multiple legal challenges.

Immigrant rights groups also have noted New York City agreed to pay a $92.5 million settlement to resolve a class action lawsuits over claims from thousands of migrants who claimed they were illegally detained, and Chicago could risk a similar settlement if it were to roll back its existing protections for undocumented immigrants.

"We have a history of this city getting that part wrong, and settlements that come because of it," said Ald. Andre Vasquez (40th).

Ald. Jessie Fuentes (26th) moved to table the vote on the proposed changes to the Welcoming City Ordinance on Wednesday, and by a 39-11 vote, the City Council agreed to keep the proposal from Lopez and Tabares locked up in committee.

The aldermen who opposed the measure also said it was designed to stoke fear in immigrant communities who would then be reluctant to call 911 during emergencies.

"Decades of research shows that sanctuary cities are safer," said Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (35th).

While Lopez and Tabares could try again to pass the measure at a future meeting, they would need 34 votes to approve the proposed changes and survive a certain veto from Mayor Brandon Johnson, who had lobbied alders to keep the Welcoming City Ordinance intact.

What does state law say about local law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration agents?

The mayor's office and Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul both have warned the proposed changes to the Welcoming City Ordinance would violate the Illinois TRUST Act, which largely prohibits state, county, and local law enforcement agencies from cooperating with ICE.

In cases where an undocumented immigrant has been arrested, ICE officials might issue a detainer asking police to hold them for 48 hours until ICE agents can take them into federal custody, but Illinois law prohibits such cooperation except in cases where the person faces a federal criminal arrest warrant.

Johnson celebrated the vote to keep the Welcoming City Ordinance intact after Wednesday's council meeting, saying "protecting residents in the city of Chicago is of most importance here."

"Our job is to make sure that people are protected and safe. That is the top priority of any government, and that's what we're going to do," Johnson said.

Johnson said the effort to roll back protections for undocumented immigrants "was just stoking the flames of fear."

"The fear that has found its way in the city of Chicago, because of the threats that are coming from the incoming administration, the people of Chicago can rest assured that the full force of government will do everything in its power to protect the residents of this city," he said.

A recent Chicago Police Department advisory also has offered insight into what officers will be allowed to do when it comes to that effort to deport undocumented immigrants once Trump takes office.

Police sources said a special order advisory about "responding to incidents involving citizenship status" was recently given to supervisors.

Among the things it mentions, department members will not assist with enforcing immigration law unless taking police action because of an immediate public safety concern or violation; and they will not stop, arrest, or detain someone based solely on immigration status.

Trump administration plans to make Chicago "ground zero" for mass deportations

President-elect Donald Trump's pick as border czar, Tom Homan, has warned Chicago will be "ground zero" for the incoming administration's plans for mass deportations once Trump takes office.

"Chicago's in trouble because your mayor sucks and your governor sucks," Homan said last month at an event hosted by the Law and Order PAC and the Northwest Side GOP Club.

Homan warned the Trump administration would flood Chicago with ICE agents "looking for criminals and gang members."

"If your Chicago mayor doesn't want to help, he can step aside," Homan said. "But if he impedes us—if he knowingly harbors or conceals an illegal alien—I will prosecute him."

Johnson said he'd be open to sitting down with Homan to discuss the Chicago's sanctuary city ordinance and the Trump administration's plans for enforcing federal immigration laws.

"As a public servant, it's my responsibility to show up for the people of Chicago, and if there are people who are part of the Trump administration who want to have a serious conversation about how we create a better, stronger, safer Chicago, of course I'm open to those conversations," he said.

Critics of Chicago's Welcoming City ordinance have said it ties officers' hands and keeps them from fulfilling their oath.

Lopez has argued allowing police to cooperate with federal immigration authorities would avoid having ICE agents target law-abiding migrants by helping the feds track down immigrants who have committed crimes since arriving in the U.S.

Lopez and Tabares accused their opponents of refusing to be part of the solution.

"These immigrant advocates, they don't want to solve the problem. They want to … it fuels their narrative and capacity to fundraise, and so they profit on fear," Tabares said.

"All of this is just political theater for them to have a boogeyman to point at the next four years," Lopez said.

Critics said the Lopez, Tabares, and their allies were simply trying to appease the incoming Trump administration.

"What we don't need, especially in a time when we have a new administration coming, are distractions; and for anyone who's watched 'The Apprentice,' appeasing Donald Trump doesn't really get you anywhere," said Ald. Andre Vasquez (40th).

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