The family of Emma Shafer, a 24-year-old killed in Springfield in July 2023, released a statement Wednesday after U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem unexpectedly moved her Illinois speech to the site of their daughter’s murder.
Schafer was a 24-year-old community organizer who was fatally stabbed in her Springfield apartment in July 2023. The suspected killer, Gabriel P. Calixto, remains at large.
Noem spoke near the site of Shafer’s murder, using it to emphasize her criticism of Illinois’ “sanctuary” policies and saying Calixto was in the U.S. illegally at the time of the crime. Springfield police and the U.S. Marshals Service said they are cooperating on the case.
Noem had been scheduled to speak in front of the Governor’s Mansion, but instead moved her news conference in a move Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said was done to avoid demonstrations protesting her visit.
Shafer’s parents did not attend Noem’s news conference and instead were blocks away protesting her visit.
“Our daughter Emma radiated love and light everywhere she went and for all people. Even as a child, she was a friend to everyone and someone who spoke up for the less fortunate. She dedicated her life – her career and her free time – to causes of social justice and equity. That was just who she was. To see her used by Secretary Noem and others to advance a cruel and heartless political agenda is not just deeply painful to us – it is an insult to her memory,” Cathy Schwartz and John Shafer said in a statement hours later. “Noem’s words are in direct conflict with who Emma was as a person. Emma built up community and stood with all members, including immigrants.
When asked if she knew Shafer’s parents were not at her event, but rather at one protesting her presence, Noem said she was unaware.
“No parent should have to experience the loss of a child,” their statement continued. “But every time her name is brought into these conversations – conversations she would have wanted nothing to do with – we have to relive the pain of her death. Secretary Noem, as parents still grieving the loss of a child, we beg you to stop. This is not who she was. This is not helping us. Her memory should live in all the people she touched and the causes that she fought for. We ask all of you to remember Emma as she was and to live your life as she did: withcourageous empathy and love for all.”
During her address, Noem blasted Illinois’ sanctuary state policies and Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s leadership.
Noem stood next to public officials and what she called “angel families” — families she said had loved ones impacted by crimes committed by people who are in the country illegally. NBC Chicago has not been able to independently confirm their stories.
At the same time, large signs could be seen on the gates to the Illinois Governor’s Mansion in Springfield, where her address was originally expected.
“Due process for all,” numerous signs situated along the property read, referencing criticism that the Trump Administration’s current immigration policies are pushing, if not violating, constitutional limits.
Pritzker’s office called the visit a “Trump-Noem publicity stunt.”
“Since 2017, Illinois has been a sanctuary state. The results have been absolutely disastrous for people who live here,” Noem said during a news conference in Springfield.
Noem, the former governor of South Dakota, has branded herself as a top messenger for President Donald Trump. The president nominated her to lead DHS in November, and she was confirmed in January.
“Now that we’ve given the American people the safest and most secure border in American history, we have to double down at removing dangerous criminals. President Trump has been focused on making sure that we’re going after the worst of the worst,” Noem said.
Pritzker released a statement after the news conference saying he wants Noem to “spend less time performing for Fox News and more time protecting the Homeland.”
Noem’s visit comes a day after Pritzker announced he will voluntarily head to Washington D.C. in June to testify before a Republican-led Congressional committee about Illinois’ immigration policies. Illinois is considered a sanctuary state due to a law in enacted in 2017 called the TRUST Act, signed by Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner. The law limits local law enforcement’s ability to cooperate with federal immigration officials. In 2021, Pritzker signed legislation into law that expanded the TRUST Act.
“This governor has bragged about Illinois being a firewall against President Trump’s immigration enforcement agenda, and it is very clear that he has violating the Constitution of the United States because it is a federal law that the federal government and the president set and enforce immigration policies,” Noem said.
The governor’s office has repeatedly said the TRUST Act is compliant with federal law.
“Unlike Donald Trump and Kristi Noem, Illinois follows the law,” Pritzker said in a statement. “The Trump Administration is violating the United States Constitution, denying people due process, and disappearing law-abiding neighbors – including children who are U.S. citizens. Yet, they are taking no real action to promote public safety and deport violent criminals within the clear and defined legal process.”
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