Rokita threatens St. Joseph, Lake County sheriffs with lawsuits over alleged immigration policies

Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita is threatening more local governments with lawsuits over the state’s ban on so-called “sanctuary city” policies.

Rokita sent letters Wednesday to the St. Joseph County and Lake County Sheriffs’ Offices.

A 2011 Indiana law bans local governments from restricting cooperation with federal officials over citizenship or immigration information. This year, legislators empowered the attorney general’s office to enforce that ban.

Rokita’s newest letters to the St. Joseph and Lake County sheriffs said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement labels those departments “non-cooperative” agencies.

Rokita also accuses them of “refusing to honor” ICE detainers — requests from the federal government to hold people in jail past their release date to allow federal agents to determine whether to take them into custody for potential deportation.

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The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Office said Rokita’s letter doesn’t include any proof of his allegations. And it said the department fully complies with all state and federal laws and “does not restrict the federal enforcement of federal immigration laws.”

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office did not respond to a request for comment.

Rokita previously threatened the cities of Gary, East Chicago and West Lafayette with lawsuits. The attorney general’s office has an ongoing legal action against the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office under the sanctuary cities ban.

Brandon is our Statehouse bureau chief. Contact him at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5.