Chicago activist tells Congress sanctuary policies have strained services and calls for forensic audit

Danielle Carter Walters, identified in the hearing as vice president of Chicago Flips Red, told the House Judiciary subcommittee that Chicago’s sanctuary policies have strained city services and neighborhoods and urged federal scrutiny and a forensic audit of migrant-related spending.

"We are here to to confront the reality of sanctuary cities. Despite the word sanctuaries, these cities are anything but safe," Walters said. She argued that schools, affordable housing and public safety in parts of Chicago have suffered and said the city has funneled money to services for migrants: "He's driven our city into a billion dollar deficit, handed out shady non bid contracts and funneled over $6,000,000 into services for illegal aliens." (Walters presented these dollar figures in her testimony.)

Walters testified that shelters and other facilities for migrants have increased demands on police and city services, and she urged a "full forensic audit focused on migrant related spending," along with federal investigation if corruption is found. She also criticized Chicago elected officials by name, saying former Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Mayor Brandon Johnson advanced policies she views as harmful to longtime residents.

Committee members pressed witnesses on specific claims of crime and municipal spending. Representative Andy Biggs asked Walters whether she wanted a freeze on a proposed city budget amount until audits were completed; Walters answered yes. Other members challenged witnesses’ causal claims linking sanctuary status to crime statistics; Democratic members and some witnesses at the hearing pointed to research and court rulings that show different outcomes in jurisdictions with sanctuary policies.

Walters’s testimony represented one activist perspective heard by the subcommittee; the hearing also included law-enforcement witnesses who emphasized trust and legal concerns. The committee did not take legislative action at the hearing; members on both sides said they would submit further materials for the record.