Immigration

As the U.S. government escalates immigration raids in Illinois and nationwide, some Illinois sheriffs are expressing support and a desire for greater cooperation with federal immigration enforcement despite state laws that limit their involvement.

A letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem questions the “military-style tactics” of ICE agents and asks for a definitive answer into how many Illinois arrests have been made since federal authorities announced the launch of “Operation Midway Blitz” on Sept. 8.

The head of Illinois State University's legal studies program says public employees have some free speech protections, but those protections have been successfully challenged in court.

As part of the nationwide Welcoming Week initiative, representatives from The Immigration Project, ISU's Queer Coalition and Rainbow Railroad will discuss how immigration policies are affecting the queer community.

St. Mary's Catholic Church hosts their annual kermes in celebration of Hispanic heritage. The event serves as a fundraiser to honor the birth of the Virgin of Guadalupe on Dec. 12.

The McLean County Sheriff's department is fessing up to an error that allowed federal immigration agencies to search its database of Flock Safety license plate reading cameras for more than four months this year.

In a post on the social media platform X, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said the operation would target undocumented immigrants who have sought refuge in Illinois and Chicago.

Police departments in McLean County that use automatic license plate reading cameras [ALPRs] say none of their data has been shared with federal immigration officers. This comes after Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias said camera company Flock shared data with those federal agencies.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul urged a federal court to strike down a Department of Homeland Security policy denying bond hearings to detained immigrants in a legal brief filed Tuesday.

Gov. JB Pritzker said Tuesday he expects Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to employ the same aggressive strategies they used in Los Angeles earlier this summer after President Donald Trump said he will deploy the National Guard to Chicago.