Marion County Board Chair Steve Whritenour says the county welcomes all federal agencies and will work with them to remove illegal aliens.
Whritenour has asked that a resolution be drafted to go before the full county board at its regular meeting later this month to declare they are not a ‘sanctuary jurisdiction’ as declared by the Department of Homeland Security. All but six of the 102 counties in Illinois find themselves on the list. All counties in South Central Illinois are on the list.
The list of states, counties, and municipalities was compiled under an Executive Order signed by President Donald Trump last month. The Department of Human Services was required to identify units of government deemed to be interfering with immigration policies. The list could be used by the Office of Management and Budget to terminate federal grants to those on the list.
Marion County Sheriff Kevin Cripps blames Governor JB Pritzker for the designation because of Illinois’ stance as a sanctuary state. He says they can work with federal agents, but there are some limitations as a result of the TRUST Act.
The Illinois Sheriff’s Association says the TRUST Act restricts local law enforcement agencies in Illinois from participating in civil immigration enforcement. Specifically, the law prohibits local law enforcement from allowing immigration agents access to individuals in custody, detaining individuals based solely on federal administrative warrants or ICE detainer requests, and sharing non-public information about individuals in custody with federal immigration authorities.
However, the Association says the act does not prevent local law enforcement from continuing to perform their duties in investigating criminal violations or cooperating with federal authorities in criminal investigations. The association says public safety remains the primary concern, and they believe that local agencies should have the ability to work alongside federal partners to ensure that communities are safe.
The Illinois Sheriff’s Association has consistently opposed legislative efforts to restrict local involvement in federal immigration enforcement. Their position is local agencies should retain the discretion to cooperate with federal authorities when public safety is at stake.
Cripps says so far, his department has not been called upon to assist a federal agency with an immigration issue.
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