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Chicago mayor says, ‘ICE on notice,’ commits city to pursue prosecution

By Joe Iosbaker

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson with Frank Chapman of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.

Chicago, IL – On Saturday, January 31, surrounded by community activists who have been in the streets defending immigrants against the occupation by ICE troops, Mayor Brandon Johnson signed a historic executive order.

The executive order makes Chicago the first city to require the police to investigate and refer federal agents for criminal prosecution of felony violations.

“Nobody is above the law. There is no such thing as ‘absolute immunity’ in America,” said Mayor Brandon Johnson. “The lawlessness of Trump’s militarized immigration agents puts the lives and well-being of every Chicagoan in immediate danger. With today’s order, we are putting ICE on notice in our city. Chicago will not sit idly by while Trump floods federal agents into our communities and terrorizes our residents.”

The federal government has stated they are planning another ICE surge in the Chicago area in March. Mayor Johnson’s call for prosecution is in response to absence of legal repercussions in the wake of the shooting of Marimar Martinez in Chicago and the killings of Silverio Villegas González in the Chicago suburb of Franklin Park, and Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.

Frank Chapman of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression said, “I was proud to stand with Mayor Johnson yesterday when he signed an historic executive order ordering CPD to actively engage in holding ICE agents accountable by filing complaints with the States Attorney office.”

State’s Attorney Eileen Burke is well known for her failure to stand up to ICE. She has dodged demands to investigate and close the Broadview ICE facility, notorious for reports of inhumane treatment of detainees. Burke also refused to prosecute the ICE officers who killed Silverio Villegas González, an immigrant worker shot to death by an ICE officer after dropping his child off at school in Franklin Park in September.

#ChicagoIL #IL #ImmigrantRights #InJusticeSystem #ICE #BrandonJohnson #AlexPretti #KillerICE #CAARPR #Featured