DOJ sues Illinois Gov JB Pritzker over laws protecting migrants at courthouses

The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against Illinois Governor JB Pritzker over new laws aimed at protecting immigrants from detention at key locations, including courthouses, hospitals and day care centers.

The lawsuit was filed Monday, arguing in a statement that new protective measures that ban immigration officials from detaining immigrants conducting daily errands in certain locations are unconstitutional and “threaten the safety of federal officials,” the Justice Department said in a statement.

The governor earlier this month signed legislation banning civil arrests in and around courthouses across the state. The measures also require hospitals, nurseries and public universities to have procedures for handling civil immigration operations and protecting personal information.

The laws, effective immediately, also provide legal steps for people whose constitutional rights were violated during federal immigration raids in the Chicago area; This includes $10,000 in damages to be paid to a person illegally detained while trying to attend a court hearing.

PRITZKER SIGNED LEGISLATION TO PROVIDE MORE SHIELDING OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS IN ILLINOIS WITHOUT ANY LIMITS

Pritzker, a Democrat, has led the fight against the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigrants in Illinois, particularly over the indiscriminate and sometimes violent nature of their detention.

However, the governor’s office reaffirmed that it is not opposed to detaining illegal immigrants who commit violent crimes.

“However, the Trump administration’s masked agents are not targeting the ‘worst of the worst’; they are harassing and detaining law-abiding U.S. citizens and black and brown people in daycares, hospitals, and courthouses,” spokeswoman Jillian Kaehler said in a statement. he said.

Earlier this year, the federal government reversed a Biden administration policy that banned the detention of immigrants in sensitive places such as hospitals, schools and churches.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s “Operation Midway Raid,” which began in the Chicago area in September but appears to have largely ended since then, led to the arrests of more than 4,000 people. But data on people arrested from early September to mid-October showed that only 15 percent had a criminal record, and the vast majority of crimes were traffic violations, misdemeanors or nonviolent felonies.

Governor JB Pritzker has led the fight against the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigrants in Illinois. (Kamil Krazaczynski/AFP via Getty Images)

Immigration and legal advocates praised new laws protecting immigrants in Illinois, saying many immigrants are staying away from courthouses, hospitals and schools for fear of arrest during the president’s mass deportation agenda.

The laws are a “bold choice” to challenge ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, according to Lawrence Benito, executive director of the Illinois Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition.

“Our collective resistance to ICE and CBP’s violent attacks on our communities goes beyond rapid community-led response; it includes legal solutions,” he said.

The Justice Department alleges that Pritzker and state Attorney General Kwame Raoul, also a Democrat, violated the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which states that federal law is the “supreme Law of the Land.”

ILLINOIS LAWS PASS LEGISLATION THAT WOULD BANN ICE IMMIGRANT ARRESTS NEAR COURTHOUSES

Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino leaves the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

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Raoul and his team are reviewing the Justice Department’s complaint.

“This new law reflects our belief that no person, regardless of position or authority, is above the law,” Pritzker’s office said. he said. “Unlike the Trump administration, Illinois protects constitutional rights in our state.”

The case is part of an effort by U.S. Attorney Pam Bondi to block state and local laws that the DOJ argues impede federal immigration operations, as other states also seek to protect immigrants from federal raids in sensitive areas.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.