‘A chilling effect on justice’? ICE argues courthouse immigration arrests make sense, but local opponents fear impact

Efforts to detain and deport individuals who federal authorities say are undocumented immigrants have led U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to courthouse steps, including Cook County's Third Municipal District Courthouse.

On Feb. 19, two of defense attorney Todd Cohen's clients — each facing unrelated felony charges — appeared in Rolling Meadows courtrooms for hearings as ordered. Within minutes of leaving the courthouse, each was detained by immigration agents.

One of the clients, an older man with no violent background who is charged with driving on a revoked license, has not been returned by federal authorities for subsequent hearings.

“We have not heard from him since,” Cohen said, referring to his law partners.

According to Cohen, of Cohen & Donahue Law, federal agents returned the second defendant for hearings in response to a writ issued by the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office.

Courthouse arrests, immigration courts included, have increased throughout the country. That includes Kane County where on July 21 ICE agents arrested a Mexican immigrant living in Bolingbrook as he exited the courthouse after pleading guilty to aggravated DUI in exchange for 24 months probation.

Cohen says arresting defendants in the process of obeying their pretrial orders and obligations discourages their participation.

“Since the federal government has taken these actions, members of our community who are not legal residents or citizens are very hesitant to come to court even for minor traffic matters,” he said.

Homeland Security responds

The Department of Homeland Security stated in May that courthouse arrests, part of the government’s crackdown on illegal immigration, are safer for law enforcement.

“The ability of law enforcement to make arrests of criminal illegal aliens in courthouses is common sense,” said Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for public affairs, in a prepared statement. “It conserves valuable law enforcement resources because they already know where a target will be. It is also safer for our officers and the community. These illegal aliens have gone through security and been screened to not have any weapons.”

However, Matthew Hendrickson, spokesman for Cook County Public Defender Sharone R. Mitchell Jr., said arresting immigrants at courthouses has “a chilling effect on the system’s ability to operate.”

“It is profoundly detrimental to the pursuit of justice,” he said, “impacting both victims of crimes and the ability of people accused of an offense to clear their names.”

Hendrickson said assistant public defenders have recommended remote appearances to noncitizen clients when available and when it would not negatively impact their defense.

Where judges allow, defendants have the option of appearing in court via Zoom. However, as Kane County State's Attorney Jamie L. Mosser notes, the decision rests with the judge.

Kane County has led the way in providing remote access to the court system and “continues to operate hybrid courtrooms allowing both Zoom and in-person court appearances,” according to Mosser, who points out that court appearances are mandatory for defendants.

“They do not have a choice to show up or not,” she said.

Despite the risk, “assistant public defenders encourage their clients to appear at all hearings,” Hendrickson said, adding that missing one will likely result in a judge issuing an arrest warrant for failure to appear “which would put our clients at risk of further interaction with law enforcement, including immigration authorities.”

Victims and witnesses who fail to appear when subpoenaed to court risk similar consequences. To that end, “we give our clients whatever options are available based on the jurisdiction,” said Cohen. “That can include appearances by Zoom or by way of affidavit.”

“We're living in complicated and tough times,” Cohen continued. “But we're doing everything we can by following all the rules, laws and current procedures set forth by our government and the U.S. Constitution.”

The pursuit of justice

Attorneys as well as immigration rights advocates are concerned about the impact these detentions and deportations have on the pursuit of justice if they discourage defendants as well as witnesses and victims from showing up to court.

“It is imperative that victims and witnesses feel safe to report crimes so that perpetrators don’t go unpunished,” said Lake County State's Attorney Eric Rinehart last June in response to ICE operations. “We won’t have safe and healthy communities if people are afraid to contact the police or cooperate with the prosecutor’s office.”

This year, with rising fears of deportation, Lake County has seen “at least a handful of cases where victims, witnesses and family members have been reluctant to appear in court,” according to Rinehart spokesman Steve Spagnolo, chief of government relations and external affairs.

“Our office is committed to securing justice for all victims regardless of whether they are citizens,” Rinehart said. “When ICE or others discourage victims from appearing in court, our community is less safe because we cannot win trials without victims. When victims are too scared to call the police or testify in court, dangerous offenders (of all backgrounds) go free.”

According to Hendrickson, the Cook County public defender's office is aware of at least five such arrests where federal agents took into custody individuals “who were following the law and actively working to resolve their cases.”

Declining to comment on ICE activities, DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin said in a prepared statement that his “office prosecutes all defendants equally, in consideration of the facts and circumstances of a particular case, and without concern for a defendant's immigration status.”

Addressing concerns

In a recent letter to Kane County residents, legal professionals and law enforcement officers, Chief Judge Robert K. Villa addressed community concerns about ICE activities at the Kane County Judicial Center.

He noted that federal law enforcement agencies, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, have served federal warrants at Kane County courthouses for years.

Villa referenced a general order he issued in May which states in part, that local state and federal officers must notify court security before apprehending individuals at or near the courthouse and apprehensions should be conducted discreetly “to minimize impact on court proceedings.” They may occur in the public areas of the courthouse provided they do not interfere with safety.

Additionally, he ordered apprehensions occur after the defendant's hearing has concluded and they cannot occur within a courtroom except by court order.

· Daily Herald reporter Susan Sarkauskas contributed to this report.