* Republican gubernatorial candidate…

Hello everybody. This is James Mendrick, DuPage County Sheriff running for Illinois Governor.

We’re here again today to talk about the ICE raids. It’s heating up, it’s heating up big time in the city. The gang populations are putting up messaging now saying that they’re going to resist the federal authorities as they come in to try to enforce their laws.

And once again, I have to emphasize, this is all JB Pritzker’s raids. This has nothing to do with the federal government. He still is not letting the federal government access our correctional facilities to do the business in a safe area. This is why all these raids are happening.

I’ve been a cop for almost 30 years. This is the first year that ICE raids have ever occurred, and that’s because there was a four-year period of open borders with Joe Biden, we were influxed with every single person who wanted to come across for a four-year period of time. And when Donald Trump won, he said he was going to fix the problem, get rid of the rapists, the murderers, the illegal aliens that are hurting people that are committing crimes, and that’s what they’re doing.

But as soon as he did that, out comes a sanctuary state. You don’t have access to the jails, and they’re forcing these feds, these poor feds, into streets and into houses and places where it’s dangerous for them. It’s dangerous for the illegal immigrants.

The immigrants should be just as mad at JB as the federal government and as the citizens for letting this anarchy play out in our streets instead of in our correctional facilities.

Don’t be snowed, people. You’re being lied to by the mainstream media. These ICE raids are JB Pritzker’s raids. We should be demanding of our governor to allow federal units of government to once again cooperate with local government and be in our correctional facilities, handle this there. That’s how it’s been since I’ve been a cop. This last year, it’s been JB Pritzker’s game.

And hey, look who the gang bangers took the side of - they took JB’s side. So good job. You got the gang members with you, JB. Mr. Governor, they don’t want ICE out here either. They don’t want their drug businesses getting disrupted. So you’re helping crime. Time to follow the law. Follow the law, Mr. Governor.

I will make Illinois safe again. This is James Mendrick, DuPage County Sheriff. Thank you.

The Trust Act was signed into law in 2017.

* Also, this letter was sent yesterday by Glenbrook High School District 225 Superintendent R.J. Gravel …

Landscapers.

* More…

* Block Club | Chicago Restaurants Struggle Out Of The Spotlight As ICE Fears Mount: Early Saturday morning, Dave Miller of Lincoln Square’s Bagel Miller got a text from one of his employees saying she didn’t feel safe coming into work. Living in the Logan Square and Humboldt Park area — where federal agents have smoke bombed and tear-gassed people on the streets — she was afraid to leave her house, she said. After hearing from other employees expressing similar feelings, Miller, who was out of town at the time, told them to stay home. While the neighborhood’s popular Apple Fest was in full force, the restaurant at 4655 N. Lincoln Ave. locked its doors and accepted only online orders to be picked up at its to-go window. Employees would still be paid, Miller assured them. The business has since reopened fully.

* Block Club | Hundreds Could Be Freed From ICE Custody After Warrantless Arrest Ruling: Cummings concluded that attorneys for the National Immigration Justice Center and the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois provided enough evidence to show that ICE arrested 22 people without a warrant in violation of the consent decree and federal law. The 22 people, who were arrested in the early days of President Donald Trump’s second term, were all released on bond and are no longer in custody. Cummings ordered ICE to reimburse all of their bond payments and to lift any imposed conditions of release.

* Sun-Times | Chicago judge cites South Shore raid, Supreme Court controversy while ruling against ICE: The new commentary from U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Cummings appeared in a footnote to a 52-page ruling in Chicago’s federal court. It extended, into February 2026, restrictions on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s ability to make warrantless arrests in Illinois and nearby states. Cummings declined to rule on more recent claims stemming from President Donald Trump’s “Operation Midway Blitz.” Rather, Cummings found that ICE arrested 22 people without a warrant and in violation of what’s known as the Castanon Nava settlement agreement.

* Illinois Times | Threat of ICE raids shadows every shift in Chicago’s food warehouses: Companies have laid off hundreds of people after Trump revoked some work permit programs. In suburban Schaumburg, more than 500 people were laid off in April from Nestlé USA’s Nation Pizza, the maker of DiGiorno and other popular frozen pizza brands. The end of DALE underscores a broader shift. Once seen as a tool to encourage workers to come forward about labor violations, its cancellation signals the administration’s possible intent to not investigate workplace violations.

* Block Club | Chicago Protesters Take To The Streets To Denounce National Guard Deployment, ICE: Ald. Jesse Fuentes (26th), who a federal agent handcuffed Friday at a hospital, spoke at the rally to cheers. “As your alderperson, not just of the 26th Ward because every Chicagoan matters, I will make sure that we utilize every legislative tool at our disposal to slow ICE down to protect our neighbors,” Fuentes told the crowd.

* Daily Herald | ‘Great fear and uncertainty’: Lake County leaders speak out against escalating ICE operations: “The recent immigration enforcement operations taking place in Waukegan and in our region have caused great fear and uncertainty,” Waukegan Mayor Sam Cunningham said during a news conference at Veterans Memorial Plaza, just down the street from city hall. “But I want to be clear again — in times like these, Waukegan must remain calm, united and focused on supporting one another.”

* Shaw Local | Joliet banquet manager asked ICE to leave parking lot and agents complied: Banquet Manager Ivette Nunez said she called police after getting phone calls notifying her that ICE agents were in the parking lot. There was no event taking place at the time at the banquet hall at 1013 Collins St. “I wanted them to be removed from the parking lot,” Nunez said. Nunez said she was concerned that ICE was using the private property as a stationing area without permission despite no-trespassing restrictions on the property.

* Tribune | Without the Texas National Guard’s help, Broadview protests are calm Wednesday night: With the Texas National Guard training nearly 50 miles away, Broadview police maintained control of protesters outside a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center Wednesday. Local authorities ordered about two dozen protesters to leave the village’s “free speech zone” — an area specifically designated for demonstrations against the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement mission — about 20 minutes after the city’s 6 p.m. curfew passed. As the police counted down the time left to depart, officers threatened citations and arrests. The demonstrators begrudgingly retreated to the street corner.

* STLPR | A second man dies in ICE custody at a Missouri detention center: Leo Cruz-Silva, 34, originally from Mexico, was being detained by Festus police after his Sept. 30 arrest for public intoxication, according to a statement released late Wednesday by the federal agency. He was transferred to ICE custody on Oct. 1 and sent to the Ste. Genevieve Detention Center two days later. After one day in the jail, Cruz-Silva was dead. He was found unresponsive in his cell on Oct. 4 in what ICE said appeared to be a suicide. Jail staff attempted CPR until paramedics arrived, but neither group was able to revive him. The Missouri State Highway Patrol is investigating the death. The Ste. Genevieve County Sheriff’s Office, which operates the jail, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

* WaPo | A quarter of FBI agents are assigned to immigration enforcement, per FBI data: Nearly a quarter of the FBI’s roughly 13,000 agents across the country are currently assigned to immigration enforcement, with the number climbing to upward of 40% in the nation’s largest field offices, according to data from the FBI obtained by Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.) and shared with The Washington Post. The large number of reassignments — about 3,000 agents — reflect a vast reshaping of the nation’s premier law enforcement agency, which has focused on national security threats since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The intense focus on immigration has raised alarm among current and former FBI agents who say morale is low across the bureau as agents have less time to dedicate to the often complex cases they were hired to work on.

* AP | ICE plans to boost its surveillance on social media using contractors in Vermont: According to federal contracting records, which were first reported by the technology magazine Wired, ICE plans to hire at least a dozen contracted workers for the effort at its National Criminal Analysis and Targeting Center, which is located in an unassuming business park in Williston. In addition, the agency would hire at least 16 contracted workers at a similar intelligence-gathering facility in Santa Ana, Calif.

       

38 Comments - Morty - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 9:33 am: You’d think a guy running on his law enforcement platform would know about a law that’s been on the books for almost a decade - Arsenal - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 9:37 am: ==I’ve been a cop for almost 30 years. This is the first year that ICE raids have ever occurred== What changed this year, Jim? You can tell which way the wind is blowing when the Republicans change their message from “this is good” to “this is not our fault.” - Larry Bowa Jr. - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 9:43 am: I look forward to seeing all my republican neighbors out mowing their own lawns now that the ICE goons are getting after their landscapers. Better cancel that tee time Saturday - Impervious - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 9:45 am: January 6th convicted predators pardoned, given guns, masks and ICE uniforms are now indiscriminately tossing people of color into vans without a warrant and Sheriff Jimmy wants to blame someone other than the Oval Office Otter? Jim, you are not qualified to sit at the grown up’s table . . . . - ZC - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 9:45 am: They don’t have access to the correctional facilities? What is he even remotely talking about? I’m sure someone will interject some half baked interpretation, but in a saner age we just say this guy is lying through his teeth. - Benjamin - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 9:49 am: ==The gang populations are putting up messaging now== I was not aware the gangs had press officers and communications teams. Well, learn something new every day. - NIU Grad - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 9:49 am: “If Pritzker would simply let ICE into our correctional facilities, then they wouldn’t be forced to throw tear gas outside of elementary schools, zip-tie children outside of an apartment building in the middle of the night, and arrest landscapers outside of your high school.” Sounds like he’s got a good grasp on the situation… - Roadrager - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 9:55 am: Sheriff Facebook Uncle is waaaaay out of his depth here. - Formerly Unemployed - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 9:57 am: ICE can’t go into prisons, so they are forced to grab anyone they see who looks vaguely Mexican, with no warrants, no matter what they are doing or what their legal status is? That doesn’t sound like a defense of professional policing. Looking forward to seeing all of these underemployed white men start making tamales and selling them in bars. - Someone You should Know - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:00 am: Clearly, Mendrick is not ready for prime time - Juice - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:01 am: So because ICE can’t just waltz into a prison they have to go detain a bunch of US citizens who happen to live in an apartment in South Shore where some immigrants also live and knock down their doors and rummage through their belongs. Does the fine Sheriff of DuPage understand how unhinged that is? Also, if this is about his ability to cooperate with ICE, I do wonder how many people who are actually undocumented are in the jail that he runs today. Because I don’t really see Tom Dart issuing the same complaints. - just because - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:02 am: In case you didn’t know it the biggest drug cartels are disguised as landscapers.. Snark intended. - Harrison - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:04 am: Wouldn’t that be good to know how many undocumented gang members are sitting in jail today? Seems like a reasonable inquiry. Gee what could be the difference between Tom Dart and James Mendrick? - Fact Check - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:06 am: The migrants in the South Shore apartments were not tenants. They were squatters. - low level - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:07 am: So the “tough guy” ICE agents arrested guys doing landscaping near Glenbrook South. Wow. So strong. I always feel threatened when i see them near my condo cutting grass and blowing leaves. Thank God we have demented Don in the White House to address this urgent issue…/s - charles in charge - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:11 am: “these poor feds” Wow. Just wow. - walker - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:20 am: Wow, This guy just proved he’s unqualitfied to be a Sheriff. Forget politics. Just about everything he said about the actual situation, and the actual law is false. Is there a way to send him back to training? - Jerry - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:21 am: Good for Glenbrook South! - Demoralized - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:28 am: It’s a good thing we’re going after those hardened criminal landscapers. I feel safer already. /s/ - Sigh - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:33 am: Sheriff Mendrick, the same guy that went on national Fox News and told the world he would not follow the assault weapons ban in Illinois? Then causing hundreds of gun loving folk to show up at a County Board meeting. - Incandenza - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:35 am: = The migrants in the South Shore apartments were not tenants. They were squatters. == Source? - low level - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:44 am: === The migrants in the South Shore apartments were not tenants. They were squatters. == Yes, I’m calling BS on that as well Even if they were squatters, that would not excuse ICE’s actions against unarmed people. - Roadrager - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:47 am: ==In case you didn’t know it the biggest drug cartels are disguised as landscapers.== If you know their native language, something called “Español,” I am told you can easily overhear these “landscapers” talking out in the open about “grass” and “weed” all the time. Makes you think. - Amalia - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:49 am: @Incandenza, the City inspection record available on Chicago’s website says possible squatters. it also details the terrible condition of the building, including that apartments are not secure. - Amalia - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:51 am: (sch)mendrick - XonXoff - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 10:55 am: Mendrick? Governor? Hard pass. - Rich Miller - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 11:02 am: ===They were squatters=== Some of y’all will grasp at any straw to justify clear overreach by federal government policing agencies. That does not portend well for the future. Also, careful what you wish for. - Norseman - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 11:11 am: === If Pritzker would simply let ICE into our correctional facilities, then they wouldn’t be forced to throw tear gas … === LOL, that this guy would think we’re that dense to believe this baloney. There’s no way they can meet Miller’s quota by going into prisons. - Demoralized - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 11:12 am: ==Also, careful what you wish for.== I would love to see how these defenders would feel if the feds came barging through their door and ripped them out of their house and asked questions later. I bet they wouldn’t be so willing to throw the Constitution out the window when it comes to them personally. - Harrison - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 11:26 am: You mean like Roger Stone with the CNN cameras there by coincidence to capture the predawn arrest of a senior citizen? - Perrid - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 11:31 am: Harrison, changing the subject much? But sure, if someone intentionally leaked to CNN for a perp walk, that’s bad, shouldn’t happen, and if found out they should be disciplined or even fired. Happy? Can you maybe focus back on the topic at hand and not grievances from years ago now? - Rich Miller - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 11:34 am: Harrison, your constant attempts to change the subject in these posts are gonna get you put into permanent moderation. Final warning. Everyone else, move along and stay on topic. - Consider This - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 12:14 pm: Jimmy just jumping in there, trying to get an early start to score with the base. He knows as soon as a certain farmer gets his crops in, he and the missus will be rolling into Chicago. The bus is warming up. - Excitable Boy - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 1:02 pm: Mendrick has been saying some of the dumbest things I’ve ever heard since he first took office. I’m glad a wider audience is getting an opportunity to ridicule him. - Dotnonymous x - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 1:17 pm: Will Sheriff Mendrick make Illinois as safe as His jail inmates?…DuPage County settled a lawsuit for $11 million in March 2025 with the family of Reneyda Aguilar-Hurtado, who died in the county jail in June 2023 after allegedly not receiving adequate medical and mental health care. The lawsuit was filed against Sheriff James Mendrick, the DuPage County Sheriff’s Office, DuPage County, and medical and corrections staff. - Pot calling kettle - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 1:28 pm: ==Don’t be snowed, people. You’re being lied to by the mainstream media. These ICE raids are JB Pritzker’s raids. [etc.etc.] == Translated: Stop paying attention to any news that does not come from Trump-approved sources like FoxNews, FoxNews, or FoxNews. (And, maybe CBS in a year or so.) If you watch the approved sources, you will have everything you are allowed to know and will be more likely to act accordingly, just like me. - JB13 - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 1:55 pm: “Careful what you wish for” For years, Illinois Democrats said “Immigration enforcement is up to the feds. We won’t help.” Well, here they are. Congrats. - JS Mill - Thursday, Oct 9, 25 @ 3:32 pm: or years everyone said immigration enforcement is up to the feds. Wanna know why? Because that is how the law is written. TrackBack URI Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.