Cook County leaders denounce ICE raids, call for transparency

CHICAGO — Cook County leaders are denouncing the presence of ICE agents in the Chicago area.

Some board members are now proposing a resolution to counter federal agents’ presence.

A press conference was held at 9 a.m. at the Cook County Administration Building. This comes a day after immigration raids in Elgin and Chicago.

Leaders are calling for a congressional oversight. They say agents are not providing any transparency or identification when showing up at public spaces.

“Unmarked cars and the refusal to provide idenfication are not hallmarks of transparency or accountability. Instead they raise the risk of abuse, intimidation and impersonation. This is unacceptable,” said Cook County Commissioner President Toni Preckwinkle.

ICE agents made several arrests between Monday and Tuesday in Elgin and the Chicagoland area. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was at the head of some of those arrests.

Noem posted videos of ICE arrests in Elgin Tuesday morning, saying she’s on the ground to make it clear the department isn’t backing down.

“Just this morning, DHS took violent offenders off the streets with arrest for assault, DUI, and felony stalking,” Noem wrote on social media.

Video from around 5 a.m. Tuesday shows men in handcuffs being taken from their home.

WGN News was at the home shortly after, the front door completely ripped off its hinges.

Among those arrested was 37-year-old alleged gang member, Aldo Salazar Bahena, according to ICE spokespeople.

Bahena was convicted of murder in 2005, according to Homeland Security spokespeople. Illinois law prohibits prison officials from honoring ICE detainer requests and Bahena was released from Stateville Prison in Crest Hill on Friday, only to be arrested again Monday.

Over in the city’s Chatham neighborhood, a man witnessed ICE agents targeting day laborers outside of a Home Depot, one person trying to get away from ICE agents.

It’s unclear the total number of people who were arrested Monday and Tuesday.

However, US Rep. Lauren Underwood says ICE has arrested 250 since the start of Operation Midway Blitz earlier this month.

Preckwinkle says 21 percent of the county’s population is foreign born and immigrant families contribute to the economy. She says residents following legal processes to become citizens have been detained and US citizens have been harrassed.

However, the Trump administration continues to say ICE’s enforcement actions for the Operation Midway Blitz are soley focused on those they have determined to be in the US illegally.

In July, County Commissioner Jessica Vasquez introduced a resolution denouncing tactics of federal agents.

“This resolution condemns ICE’s increasingly dangerous tactics under the Trump administration, and calls on county agencies to provide commissioners with official communication whenever immigration enforcement takes place in our buildings, on county property or with our staff. Transparency saves lives. Knowing whether ICE agents are present in our county spaces, gives our residents the ability to make informed and safe decision,” said Vasquez.

The resolution will be heard in the Human Relations Committee on Wednesday. It will go up for a floor vote on Thursday.