Illinois files lawsuit against Trump administration, accuses feds of violent ‘occupation’
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and the city of Chicago sued the federal government Monday alleging immigration agents had undermined the state’s sovereignty with violent acts and unlawful arrests.
“Tear gas. Chemical weapons. Rubber bullets. Masked men carrying semiautomatic rifles … as they intimidate, harass and assault,” Raoul said regarding the recent “Midway Blitz” immigration crackdown.
“These hallmarks of a war zone seen on movie screens have no place in an American city, much less at a day care center, courthouse, in our neighborhoods or outside of children’s schools.”
Defendants in the lawsuit filed in federal court include the leaders of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
This fall, ICE and CBP were deployed to Chicago and the suburbs as part of President Donald Trump’s mass deportation effort, which he promised would reduce crime.
“They have not made our city or our state safer,” Raoul said. “They have killed one resident, shot another and conducted a military-style raid on a Chicago apartment building and detained all the residents, including children.”
He asserted that since September, federal officers had rampaged through the region, and “acted as occupiers,” conducting unlawful arrests, illegal interrogations and arbitrarily using tear gas on peaceful protesters.
The Daily Herald has reached out to DHS for comment. During “Midway Blitz,” federal officers arrested more than 1,000 immigrants in the country unlawfully, including violent criminals and gang members, DHS officials have said.
The effort “was neither unconstitutional nor an invasion. President Trump has the authority under the Constitution to deploy troops, wherever they’re stationed, to defend federal facilities from attacks,” a spokesperson said previously.
“DHS enforces federal immigration law without fear, favor, or prejudice.”
The lawsuit contends DHS has violated the 10th Amendment, which delineates power between federal and state governments. It asks the court to ban agents from using tear gas against people who are not resisting and from entering private property without a warrant or the owner’s permission.
It also seeks officers to have “written documentation for the basis of asking Illinoisans about their immigration status,” and to prohibit immigration enforcement in sensitive locations like courthouses, hospitals and schools unless extenuating circumstances exist.