Lawsuit by Kankakee, McHenry counties to keep ICE detention center agreements has been dropped

A lawsuit filed by McHenry and Kankakee Counties to stop the implementation of the Illinois Way Forward Act was dismissed on Monday. 

The Act bans law enforcement agencies from around the state from stopping, arresting, searching, detaining or continuing to detain a person solely based on an individual's citizenship or immigration status. Signed into law on Aug. 2 by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, the Act will force existing agreements between Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and jails in Illinois to end beginning Jan. 1. It also prevents any future agreements.  

The lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court aimed to challenge the Act by seeking to delay its end-of-year deadline. The lawsuit argued that the Act violates the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution, forbidding state and federal government from intruding on each other's sovereignty. 

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"The court’s ruling in this particular matter is extremely disheartening, and quite frankly shows a clear overreach by the IL General Assembly and Governor Pritzker by not only overpowering local government control but also that of the United States Constitution," Kankakee County Sheriff Mike Downey said in a statement. 

Kankakee County, which is one of two Illinois counties that houses ICE detainees for the Department of Homeland Security, began housing detainees in October 2016, according to a news release from the Kankakee Sheriff's Office.

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"This decision will have absolutely no impact on these detainees being released.  In fact, they will undoubtedly be transferred to other states, all the while forcing families of these detainees to travel much farther to visit their loved ones all due to typical partisan Illinois politics in Springfield," Downey said. "We have every intention of appealing the District Court’s decision. Revenue generated while housing for ICE helps to offset the burden of housing local inmates. Governor Pritzker has continued to advance his pro criminal anti-law enforcement agenda and law-abiding citizens end up footing the bill." 

Kankakee joined the McHenry County lawsuit in September.

"While we are obviously disappointed in this first ruling, the Kankakee County Board will pursue this as far as we can, up to and including the US Supreme Court," said Kankakee County Board Chairman Andy Wheeler in a statement. 

All contracts will be given until the end of January, if a successful appeal is not reached.