Letter to the Editor: Ignoring due process makes law enforcement much more difficult

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old father of three, has never been charged with a crime, yet the Trump Administration sent him to an infamous prison in El Salvador. Trump has since defied judges at every level, including the Supreme Court, ignoring orders to provide Garcia his right to due process. 

Now it seems that anyone can be pulled off the street by plainclothes officers wearing masks, hidden in undisclosed jails and shipped off to foreign detention centers without due process. These practices erode our trust in the rule of law. By ignoring judicial orders, President Trump undermines our faith in the power of the courts to uphold justice.

Critically, ignoring due process makes law enforcement much more difficult. Trump’s lawless approach to immigration undercuts the police, who work every day to assure us, through their deeds and actions, that the legal system is fair, ethical and rules-based.

Policing is an inherently dangerous job but consider the stakes when the community increasingly fears the consequences of an encounter with law enforcement. Distrust and fear discourage people from providing information that can prevent crime or solve difficult cases.

Trump’s actions breed exactly the chaos from which the police are supposed to keep us safe, making their jobs significantly harder and riskier. If you support the police and want Trump to follow the law, please speak out against the illegal detention of Kilmar Abrego Garcia and other immigrants who are being deported without their day in court.

Paul Winters
Monticello, Illinois