Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel said Friday that he will sue the Trump administration in federal court over plans announced by Attorney General Jeff Sessions to withhold funds to sanctuary cities.
"We are not going to be between picking our values of who we are as a welcoming city, and strengthening our police department," Emanuel told WLS-AM in an interview to be broadcast Sunday, The Chicago Tribune reports.
"We're not going to actually auction off our values as a city, so Monday morning the City of Chicago is going to court," he added. "We're going to take the Justice Department to court based on this.
"We find it unlawful and unconstitutional to be, as a city, coerced on a policy."
The Justice Department declined to comment on Emanuel's comments Friday, the Tribune reports.
Last month, Sessions said that the federal Byrne Justice Assistance Grants would be withheld from communities that do not provide advance notice to Immigrations and Custom Enforcement agents of illegal immigrants about to be released from custody nor provide access to local jails.
Chicago would receive about $3.2 million in Byrne grants, the Tribune reports. The funds mostly are used to buy police vehicles.
Democratic California Attorney General Xavier Becerra is also considering legal action over the Justice Department's decision, the Tribune reports.
In Chicago, local laws prohibit ICE agents access to people held by the city Police Department, unless they are wanted on a criminal warrant or have serious criminal convictions.
Regulations also bar local police from allowing ICE agents to use their jails for interviews or investigations, the Tribune reports.
Officers on duty also cannot respond to ICE inquiries or discussing a person's custody status or release date with agents.
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