Orland Park says its police will work with federal immigration agents on cases involving undocumented immigrants charged with or convicted of criminal offenses.
The Village Board recently adopted a resolution that also supports Senate Bill 1313 that would undo provisions of existing state law concerning law enforcement coordination with federal agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Trustees also reaffirmed Orland Park is not a sanctuary city, citing an ordinance approved by the board in January 2024.
The recent resolution came Feb. 3, as the Justice Department sued Chicago, Cook County and the state over sanctuary policies.
Those policies “have the purpose and effect of making it more difficult for, and deliberately impeding, federal immigration officers’ ability to carry out their responsibilities in those jurisdictions,” the plaintiffs argue in their lawsuit, filed Thursday in federal court in Chicago.
The lawsuit argues the U.S. Constitution’s Supremacy Clause “prohibits Illinois, Chicago, Cook County, and their officials from obstructing the Federal Government’s ability to enforce laws that Congress has enacted or to take actions entrusted to it by the Constitution.”
Orland Park, in its resolution, says it “rejects policies that prioritize political ideology over public safety and opposes any law that shields individuals with criminal records from lawful detention and removal.”
“Law enforcement must have the necessary tools to address crime effectively, without artificial legal restrictions that impede cooperation.”
The village said copies of the approved resolution would be sent to Gov. JB Pritzker and leaders in the Illinois General Assembly as well as Orland Park’s representatives in Springfield.
Senate Bill 1313, filed late last month, would amend the Illinois Trust Act, which was enacted in 2017 and generally prohibits police from participating in immigration enforcement.
Among other things, it bars police from stopping, arresting, searching or detaining someone based solely on their citizenship or immigration status.
The Senate measure would direct police to notify ICE if it has in custody a person who is not a U.S. citizen and who was convicted or charged with a criminal offense under Illinois law.
Before trustees voted to adopt the resolution, some spoke in favor of it and against the Trust Act.
“This just embarrassing to live in a state that doesn’t support the ICE and doing everything humanly possible to put criminals behind bars,” Trustee William Healy said. “I hope it somehow makes a difference.”
Mayor Keith Pekau said federal law supercedes state law in matters of immigration.
“It is unacceptable for the state and the county to place the village of Orland Park, our police officers and our residents in direct conflict with federal authorities,” Pekau said.
“This is a necessary step toward restoring law and order” he said of the Senate bill.
The Justice Department lawsuit specifically goes after the Trust Act, signed into law by Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner.
The law generally prohibits state and local law enforcement from getting involved in deportation efforts with ICE or other federal law enforcement agencies dealing with immigration matters.
While the law prevents state and local law enforcement from assisting the federal government with regular immigration enforcement, it allows coordination when there is a federal criminal warrant involved.
