My post from September 3, 2017
So, interesting story today. A man in jail. Immigrant of a particular status. Been in McHenry County for 20 years.
Charged with Domestic Battery. His second misdemeanor. Was convicted on his first. Paid a fine and met the terms of his sentence. This time it is asserted that he just grabbed a wrist. I am NOT going to gloss over that.
**Man keep your f**king hands off.**
Still, innocent til proven guilty.
Still, we have sentencing laws and etc …
We are all due FAIR treatment in the eyes of the law.
We are very flawed in our human form.
Statutory law is pretty fair in these matters.
Also an immigration hold is in play. There is no warrant. He cannot post bond DESPITE newly enacted state legislation called the Trust Act, which Daniel Biss (current challenger for Governor) co-sponsored.
It is short and sweetly 2-pages-to-the-point.
Judge defers to…
Assistant State’s Attorney who reps…
Sheriff that is seeking input from state and fed officials…
Which ones? I’d like to know.
A dude is in jail. While this gets sorted. His immigration status is unknown – this is why, says the SA, that he is being detained. (He was in the mix in with his first misdemeanor in 2014, didn’t they notice it then?) Hmm….
Feds and state and county, attorneys all in the mix. Oh an elected official is accused of icky poo motives, but that is just an accusation at this point.
This little issue will be a MAJOR talking point in McHenry County’s Circuit Judge election me thinks. Any election in McHenry county. Get ready for this to wiggle its way into campaigns for the next 4 years.
Neighboring counties do not have an issue with being “mixed up” with the Feds in a rent-a-bed program where the county is paid a per diem to house ICE detainees or Federal Marshall detainees. Why does McHenry County have a need to do so to offset their budget? Why is it so expensive in McHenry County? Could be said they keep immigrants incarcerated for federal $$, I mean if you were cynical.
Lake county for example, has over 2 dozen people eligible for bond via the newly dropped Trust Act. Lake County already had a policy to do (to a degree) what the Trust Act outlines.
My post from October 4, 2017
I attended the Gubernatorial Candidate Forum at NIU They did not get to the question I penned, no biggie, I think there were 70+ questions. Really good ones too. There were some good laughs too.
At the end of the night I approached Biss. I shook his hand and I unfolded the story for him about Niceforo Macedo-Hernandez. I told him that our state’s attorney said that the Trust Act was unconstitutional. His eyebrows raised.
I said hey I don’t know that you can make the sheriff comply, but our community needs your voice. You put a pen to that legislation you put your name on that legislation and we need you to step it up. I wrote down the sheriff’s name the state’s attorney’s name also the phone number for KRV law and handed them to Biss. He asked me for my contact information and I gave it to him.
BISS NEVER REACHED OUT. NEVER SHOWED UP.
My post on October 22, 2025
At the Citizens Action Illinois Congressional D9 forum tonight I reminded Daniel Biss that the last time I was face-to-face with him at a forum was when he was running for governor. I handed him an outline of the history, printed on a piece of paper. I watched him read it.
“The forum was at NIU. 10/3/2017. I shook his hand and I told him the story of Niceforo Macedo Hernandez, a 20-year resident of McHenry County. He was in custody for a misdemeanor battery charge and was put into the county jail. The judge set bond but Niceforo could not exercise his right to post bail and be released because every time he tried the sheriff’s employees said they could not accept bail payment because there was an immigration detainer.
Our states attorney Prim said that the Trust Act was unconstitutional. Niceforo’s immigration status was unknown and this is why the state’s attorney said that he was being detained. But in 2014 Niceforo was charged with his first misdemeanor and they didn’t know his immigration status then either. So…?
I told Biss that I knew he could not make the sheriff comply but our community needed his voice. He co-sponsored the legislation and in McHenry County we needed support. Activists were working like crazy to get this man out of ICE custody. Niceforo was transferred to ice by Prim. He was facing deportation despite the Trust Act”
This was a test of the Trust Act. You would think because of the way he was pushing the Trust Act that he would zero in on this especially during his campaign cycle for governor. Especially considering that the trust act was meant to protect people like Nisforo in this exact situation. I mean he co-sponsored a piece of legislation that so many people were working so hard on for such a long time. I mean it was part of his every day probably for a long time.
I asked him tonight why that was. I told him it was shocking to see him here now. Knowing what happened to Niceforo Macedo Hernandez. All that is happening with ICE in 2025 and watching him take a stand. It brought back this memory to me. He said that the only thing he could think of was that there was so much going on that he couldn’t be every place. He apologized
I asked him if he knew where Niceforo is now. He said no and asked me if I knew. I said no. Maybe we would, had he as a State Senator, taken interest.
Finally I asked him if he were elected would he take money from AIPAC? He quickly said NO!
I think one in his role must put the brakes on and follow through. Do the thing that is right. There was a man who was being denied freedom. ICE was out of bounds. Biss was knee deep in the original legislation, and couldn’t make the connection? There was too much going on? He couldn’t be every place? I have a difficult time thinking about something that could have possibly been more important at that time.
