McHenry County sheriff: Helping ICE with mass deportations hindered by state law

McHenry County Sheriff Robb Tadelman says state law limits his office’s ability to work with the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement on the mass deportations that President-elect Donald Trump has promised.

Trump has pledged to begin a campaign of wide-scale deportations on his first day in office when he takes the oath Monday. States and county sheriffs have weighed in about how they would respond to those efforts.

Tadelman said that the Illinois Trust Act prohibits local law enforcement from honoring Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainers or acting on immigration status without a judicial warrant.

“These restrictions hinder our ability to assist in removing dangerous criminals from our neighborhoods, creating unnecessary barriers to ensuring public safety,” the statement said.

However, Tadelman noted in his statement that the county will cooperate with ICE ”in cases where a judge has issued a criminal warrant" against someone without legal status to be in the U.S. The sheriff added that his office “will continue its official duties in investigating violations of criminal law and cooperating in such investigations with federal and other law enforcement agencies to ensure public safety and maintaining the trust of our community.”

Governors and lawmakers in Republican-led states have announced plans that could aid the Trump administration in mass deportation efforts, according to the Associated Press, and sheriffs across the country and region have weighed on whether they will cooperate. The Grundy County sheriff said last month his office would not cooperate with ICE in noncriminal deportation cases. In Kankakee County, the sheriff similarly said state law bans the sheriff’s office from working with ICE.

The Illinois Trust Act, the law Tadelman cited in his statement, was signed into law in 2017 by Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner. The law prohibits local and state police from searching, arresting or detaining a person simply because of their immigration status.

Tadelman also said in his statement that he hoped lawmakers would take another look at the Illinois Trust Act “and work toward commonsense solutions that enable law enforcement to focus on protecting law-abiding citizens.”

About 10% of McHenry County’s about 310,000 residents were not born in the United States. Out of those not born in the U.S., about 59% are naturalized citizens, while 41% are not, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

When he ran for sheriff, Tadelman, a Republican, made a number of campaign pledges, written in capital letters on his campaign website, including that he would stand up to “liberal politicians and their anti-police rhetoric.” He also pledged to work to make sure his office could cooperate with ICE and other federal agencies.

Tadelman’s statement was more moderate than his campaign website, but said the government’s first duty is protecting the people.

“To accomplish this, local and federal law enforcement must be able to collaborate without the constraints of politically motivated policies. The Illinois Trust Act places undue limitations on our efforts, compromising the safety and security of the very communities we are sworn to protect,” Tadelman said in the statement.

The county has a history both of working with ICE and of state laws rolling back those collaborations. State law forced McHenry County to cancel its contract with ICE to house detainees at the McHenry County Jail.

That was the result of the Illinois Way Forward Act, which went into effect in 2022. By February 2022, no ICE detainees were in the McHenry County Jail.

When the legislation was passed in 2021, McHenry County Board Chairman Michael Buehler was among the public officials who opposed it.

Bill Prim, Tadelman’s predecessor as sheriff, was sued over the Trust Act. The lawsuits were later dropped, and Prim maintained his office was never out of compliance with the law.

As for mass deportations, Tadelman said in his statement this week: “Public safety is not a partisan issue – it is a shared responsibility. We remain committed to doing everything in our power to serve and protect the people of McHenry County.”