People protest outside the Palatine police station Oct. 28, 2025, after authorities said a Palatine police officer aided a federal enforcement action Monday morning. | Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
By Tess Kenny | Chicago Tribune
Holding signs that read, “Do better be better” and “Resist,” about 100 people protested outside Palatine police headquarters Tuesday, a day after one of the department’s officers aided a federal enforcement action, a move that has raised questions over whether the officer acted in accordance with state law and prompted local backlash.
“I had thought that in Illinois, police are not supposed to help (U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement),” longtime Palatine resident Linda Sabor said as she stood alongside fellow demonstrators and her husband.
In Illinois, the TRUST Act prevents the use of state and local resources for civil immigration enforcement purposes, according to a fact sheet from the Illinois attorney general. The law, however, does not prevent law enforcement from “taking action to maintain peace and ensure public safety within their jurisdiction,” the fact sheet notes.
While noting that she didn’t fully know the state law, Sabor, 69, said she came because she wanted clarity on where her local authorities stood.
Just before noon Monday, Palatine police officers observed three federal agents attempting to take a person into custody after responding to a report of a disturbance in the northwest suburb, Palatine police said in a news release.
During the confrontation, a crowd of about 20 people gathered, with “several individuals shouting obscenities and moving toward the arresting agents,” according to the department. In turn, a Palatine officer positioned himself between the agents and the crowd “to ensure the safety of everyone involved and to maintain order at the scene,” the department added.
However, after continuing to see agents struggle with the person and “given the subject’s noncompliance, the agitated crowd and the potential risk of injury,” the officer “made the split-second decision to assist in stabilizing the situation,” the department said.
The officer gave verbal instructions in Spanish to the person being detained and grasped the person’s right arm — which was already being handcuffed — while the agents secured the person’s left arm to help bring the incident to a resolution, according to the department.
Read more here.
*It has been reported that our Village stands to lose as many as three police officers in 2026 due to retirements.
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