Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration wants a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Wynne Transportation – the Texas bus company that sued the City of Chicago last month alleging its bus ordinance was unconstitutional and unfairly targeted only those buses transporting migrants.
The city crafted a change to its bus ordinance in December in an effort to stop so-called “rogue buses” from dropping off scores of migrants unannounced throughout the Chicago area. City council approved the changes.
The city’s ordinance requires that bus companies apply for and get permission from the City of Chicago before dropping off migrants at the city’s designated landing zone.
Wynne filed the lawsuit in federal court in January - only after the city had filed a series of lawsuits of its own in state court against bus companies it alleged had violated its new regulations. To date, the city’s law department says that it has filed 95 violations against 30 bus companies.
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In a response filed late Thursday to Wynne’s lawsuit, attorneys representing the city allege that “there is nothing to (Wynne’s) claims, and (the lawsuit) should be dismissed.”
Wynne Transportation, which has been paid by the Texas government to transport migrants to Chicago and other U.S. cities – filed the lawsuit in federal court challenging the constitutionality of the ordinance and arguing it infringed on interstate commerce laws and the rights of migrants.
“It’s just like anybody trying to get on a bus and trying to go to their chosen destination. And the city of Chicago’s ordinance is interfering with that,” attorney Mike Kozlowski said during an interview with NBC 5 Investigates last month. “And when we’re talking about immigration, that’s a federal issue. The City of Chicago is not allowed to legislate on an immigration issue.”
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The city argues in its response that the new regulation “does not discriminate … (and applies) equally to buses from Illinois or elsewhere.”
Attorneys for the City of Chicago also wrote that Wynne “wants to be able to drop off scores of migrants on the streets of Chicago without heed to the basic safety and traffic management concerns that underlie the City’s regulations.”
NBC 5 Investigates reached out to an attorney for Wynne Friday for a response to the city’s latest filing. We have not heard back as of news time.
It’s not immediately clear when another hearing date will be set.
NBC 5 Investigates spoke to two law professors Friday, both of whom agreed the Johnson administration could potentially prevail in getting the case tossed out.
“My own assessment is that the complaint is largely a political complaint and not a serious legal complaint,” said Steve Schwinn, a law professor at the University of Illinois – Chicago who teaches constitutional law. “What I mean by that is that the Texas governor has set up this immigration program with an eye toward politics and that the complaint is simply furthering the Texas governor's political agenda, and shipping migrants to cities like Chicago. Now it's not a serious legal complaint because the claims that the bus company alleges in the complaint, simply don't hold water. And the city's response that was filed this week is really a good indication of why those claims don't hold water."
Nadav Shoked, a professor of law at Northwestern University characterized the lawsuit as “weak” and said “We all understand the logic and the background for this, the only thing the city is doing is regulating how people can arrive in the city. It is not stopping anyone from arriving in the city – it’s not even deterring anyone from arriving in the city. That’s why – even without knowing anything about the law – it is easy to see why the city is correct in arguing the lawsuit is somewhat silly.”
In a statement, the city’s law department said its response explains why the lawsuit should be dismissed.
