Sheltering at police stations has been noted to cause practical challenges to those working within the buildings, including problems of unsanitary conditions and inappropriate relationships.
“This is not a shelter overwhelmed with illegals. This is the CPD 16th District lobby today,” Chicago Contrarian said on X in late August. “We’re told some illegals at CPD District buildings across the city are demanding they be allowed to use inflatable airbeds and camping tents inside CPD District buildings.”
Around 1,600 illegal immigrants are sheltering at police stations across the city, according to WTTW.
“The conditions actually have worsened from the beginning of my journey back in April,” volunteer Erika Villegas told WTTW. “But there are stations where we do have collaboration from police officers and unfortunately, we do have stations where we have very (little) or no cooperation, which has resulted in some of the (conflicts) that have just happened recently.”
Fraternal Order of Police President John Catanzara recorded the conditions of the police stations in late August showing overcrowding and overflowing garbage in the police stations, according to WGN9.
Several members of the Chicago Police Department’s 10th District police station were accused of taking advantage of at least one migrant woman sexually and one incident was reported of a police officer reportedly impregnating an underage migrant, NBC 5 Chicago reported.
