(Indianapolis, IN) - Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita is threatening legal action against local officials in Lake and St. Joseph counties, if they are fostering policies that treat their areas like sanctuary cities.
According to a statement from Rokita’s office, “A ‘sanctuary city’ is a local unit of government that has implemented a policy that deliberately and intentionally restricts and obstructs the enforcement of federal immigration laws.”
Rokita says he has heard from residents about problems stemming from mass migration in places like Lake and St. Joseph Counties. “Illegal aliens coming across our unprotected Southern border for the last four years have caused a jump in crime, fentanyl overdoses, human trafficking, and an increased financial burden on state and local programs,” he said. “Hardworking Hoosiers are sick and tired of paying the price for this left-wing nonsense, and our office will not back down from enforcing state law.”
Rokita addressed the concerns in a letter to each County Sheriff. In the letters Rokita alleges that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) has designated each Sheriff's Department as a "non-cooperative law enforcement agency," meaning they do not provide notification to ICE prior to releasing noncitizens from custody and does not honor ICE detainer requests.
Accoring to Rokita, between March 1 and September 3 of this year, St. Joseph County has failed to honor nine detainer requests from ICE, while Lake County has ignored 31 requests. “In some instances,” Rokita said, “the individuals who were the subjects of those detainers had committed crimes that pose direct threats to public safety.”
Recently the Indiana General Assembly passed a law authorizing the attorney general to file lawsuits against any Indiana colleges, universities, or units of local government that do not comply with the Indiana ban on sanctuary cities. Rokita says he will pursue legal action after November 8 against any entities who are restricting immigration enforcement activities and communications with federal immigration authorities.
Rokita has already sent similar notices to officials in East Chicago, West Lafayette and Monroe County. His office says the first two have already changed their policy to comply with state law, and they are currently pursuing legal action against Monroe County.
