Attorney General Can’t Make Cities Enforce Immigration Laws

The U.S. attorney general can’t make states and localities help enforce the Trump administration’s immigration policies by placing conditions on their receipt of a federal law enforcement grant, the Seventh Circuit said Thursday.

In an effort to get all persons, including undocumented immigrants, to cooperate with law enforcement officers, Chicago prohibits police from requesting or disclosing a person’s immigration status. The city therefore challenged the conditions the attorney general placed on the federal Byrne JAG grants, which are awarded to state and local law enforcement agencies annually.

In 2017, the attorney general said grant participants couldn’t receive their funds unless ...