Report Details Continued Local-Federal Immigration Enforcement Cooperation in Illinois Despite TRUST Act
Despite Illinois' TRUST Act, designed to protect immigrants by limiting local law enforcement's role in federal immigration enforcement, a report by Injustice Watch reveals numerous instances where local officials in Illinois have collaborated with federal immigration agents. This collaboration has…
Chicago, IL, August 25, 2026 —
A recent report by Injustice Watch indicates that local law enforcement officials in Illinois have continued to cooperate with federal immigration agents, resulting in at least 150 individuals entering the deportation system, despite the state’s TRUST Act. The TRUST Act, enacted to protect immigrants by restricting local law enforcement’s involvement in federal immigration enforcement, appears to be circumvented through various collaborative methods detailed in the report.
According to the Injustice Watch findings, cooperation between local officials and federal immigration agents has taken several forms. These include the sharing of personal information of individuals who were stopped for minor offenses. In other instances, local law enforcement officers have utilized their positions within federal task forces to inquire about the immigration status of individuals. The report also highlights indirect facilitation of detentions through the use of shared databases and inter-agency agreements, even in situations where direct cooperation is explicitly prohibited by the TRUST Act.
The report does not specify the exact time frame for these instances of cooperation, nor does it name the specific local law enforcement agencies or federal agents involved. The number of individuals caught in the deportation system as a direct result of these collaborations is stated as at least 150. The methods described suggest a pattern of continued interaction that enables federal immigration enforcement efforts, even when direct collaboration is restricted.
The TRUST Act was intended to limit the entanglement of local law enforcement with federal immigration enforcement, aiming to build trust within immigrant communities and ensure that individuals are not deterred from reporting crimes or interacting with local police due to fear of immigration consequences. However, the Injustice Watch report suggests that these protections may not be fully realized in practice.
Further details regarding the specific legal interpretations or policy changes that have allowed these forms of cooperation to persist were not provided in the summary. The full scope of the collaboration and its impact on the individuals involved remains a subject of ongoing scrutiny, as highlighted by the Injustice Watch report.
Story summarized from the original created by Aura Bogado, Injustice Watch on blockclubchicago.org, see more information here.
