United States v. City of Waukegan (N.D. Ill.)

On August 13, 1996, the United States filed a complaint in United States v. City of Waukegan (N.D. Ill.) alleging that an ordinance enacted by the City of Waukegan discriminated against Hispanic individuals because it limited the number of persons related by blood or marriage who could live together in the same dwelling. At the time that the city passed the ordinance, its Hispanic population percentage was increasing. The United States contended that the city enacted the ordinance based on the belief that Hispanics moving into the community often lived in extended families and that the ordinance would slow the growth of the Hispanic population. The consent order, which resolved this case on May 22, 1997, required the city to cease enforcement of the ordinance, institute non-discriminatory policies, and pay $175,00 in damages to the victims of the discriminatory policy and $25,000 in civil penalties to the United States.