It has been no surprise that ICE has been a polarizing subject in the United States with a whopping 65% of the country’s people saying that ICE has gone too far with their enforcement of policy. Just a few weeks ago, the organization came under fire again for the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis causing widespread protest in the region. As a response to this, the mayor of Chicago, Brandon Johnson, has decided to get ahead of the issue by signing an executive order last Saturday, January 31st, directing city police to investigate and document alleged misconduct by federal immigration officers with an eye toward prosecution.
“We are putting ICE on notice in our city. Chicago will not sit idly by while Trump floods federal agents into our communities and terrorizes our residents,” Johnson said in a statement, referring to President Donald Trump’s controversial immigration enforcement efforts around the country. All of this news comes right after nine local attorneys launched a coalition to prosecute federal law enforcement officers who violate state laws and after New York Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed similar legislation, which would prohibit cooperation agreements between local police departments and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Right before signing the “ICE on Notice” executive order, Mayor Johnson stated, “We need to send a clear message: If the federal government will not hold these rogue actors accountable, then Chicago will do everything in our power to bring these agents to justice.” He would then add, “This executive order will make Chicago the first city in the country to set the groundwork to prosecute ICE and Border Patrol agents for criminal misconduct.”
According to Mayor Johnson, the executive order directs the Chicago Police Department to document federal enforcement actions, preserve body-camera footage, attempt to identify the federal supervisory officer on scene of an incident, complete a report on the alleged misconduct and immediately summon emergency medical services. There has been some push back on this executive order as John Catanzara, president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 7, in an email dismissed the executive order as a “piece of toilet paper” and “more political bluster from City Hall.” The Department of Homeland Security also added on that “claims of criminal misconduct by ICE law enforcement are FALSE.”
Despite these claims, Judge Jerry Blackwell said the administration has routinely not been following court mandates, ignoring multiple orders for detainees to be released that has resulted in their continued detainment for days or even weeks. Judge Blackwell also added “The volume of cases and matters is not a justification for diluting constitutional rights and it never can be,” said Blackwell. “It heightens the need for care. Having what you feel are too many detainees, too many cases, too many deadlines, and not enough infrastructure to keep up with it all is not a defense to continued detention. If anything, it ought to be a warning sign.” This response would come after DHS attorney Julie Le would say her job “sucks” after being assigner to over 80+ immigration cases.
