County's top prosecutor calls Mayor Brandon Johnson's ICE executive order 'wholly inappropriate'

Cook County State's Attorney Eileen O'Neill Burke told her staff Friday that Mayor Brandon Johnson's executive order targeting federal immigration agents is inappropriate and could jeopardize criminal prosecutions.

In an email to employees obtained by the Sun-Times, O'Neill Burke said Yvette Loizon, the chief assistant state's attorney for policy and external affairs, sent a memo to the mayor's office calling the executive order "not only wholly inappropriate, it also jeopardizes our ability to effectively prosecute and secure convictions when federal law enforcement agents have committed a crime."

O'Neill Burke said she remains concerned about immigration enforcement agents' recent actions but emphasized her office has "an obligation to follow the law."

The internal memo from Loizon, reviewed by the Sun-Times, said the state's attorney's office would not conduct felony reviews on cases referred at the direction of the mayor's office, citing ethical rules and concerns about compromising prosecution integrity.

"The injection of the mayor's office into CPD's decision to refer a case to CCSAO for felony charges compromises the integrity of the investigation and would similarly compromise the prosecution," Loizon wrote in the memo.

In her email to staff, O'Neill Burke said she had fielded questions from many on her staff about the executive order.

She said she remains "deeply concerned about the recent actions of immigration enforcement agents who have been wreaking havoc in communities across the country and in our own neighborhoods."

"At the same time, our office has an obligation to follow the law," she wrote.

The memo highlighted a provision in Johnson's executive order requiring Chicago Police Department supervisors to make felony referrals to the state's attorney's office "at the direction of the mayor's office."

Burke told her staff that Loizon's memo was sent to the mayor's office detailing the state's attorney's concerns with the executive order.

Loizon wrote that defense attorneys would likely characterize any prosecution of federal immigration agents as political and attempt to discredit CPD witnesses by suggesting their investigation was directed by the mayor's office.

She said mayoral staff who gave directives to refer cases could be called as witnesses, "creating serious litigation issues and jeopardizing our ability to secure a conviction and justice for victims of crime."

The state's attorney's office said any documents, emails or materials generated by the mayor's office prior to directing case referrals would be subject to legal discovery. If those materials were not made available to prosecutors, it could compromise their discovery obligations under federal and state law.

Johnson issued the Ice on Notice executive order following public outrage over fatal shootings by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis. The order directs police to preserve evidence and document alleged abuses by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents for potential prosecution.

At his weekly news conference, Johnson defended the order as a necessary response to what he called "rogue, reckless behavior of federal agents."

"I wish I did not have to use executive authority to provide protection for the residents of the city of Chicago because the president of the United States of America has declared war on our city," Johnson said.

O’Neill Burke said this week that she was reviewing the mayor’s order after Johnson “falsely claimed” that her office had backed it.

The mayor said he plans to use a 30-day rule-making period to address O'Neill Burke's concerns.

O'Neill Burke's office is currently prosecuting ICE Agent Adam Saracco, who faces a misdemeanor battery charge for allegedly attacking a protester at a gas station in Brookfield while off-duty.

The state's attorney said federal and state law limits prosecutors' ability to charge on-duty federal agents except in narrow circumstances.

In the memo, Loizon said the state's attorney's office has drafted a protocol for handling cases involving federal agents and shared it with Chicago police, Illinois State Police, the Cook County Sheriff's Office and state's attorneys from around Illinois for review.

"We will be sure to share it with the mayor's office when appropriate so we can meaningfully collaborate in the name of public safety," Loizon wrote.