Statement
from ICE Acting Director Tom Homan on California Sanctuary Law
Governor
Jerry Brown’s decision to sign SB54 and make California a sanctuary state for
illegal aliens – including those who have committed crimes – will undermine
public safety and hinder ICE from performing its federally mandated mission.
The governor is simply wrong when he claims otherwise.
SB54
will negatively impact ICE operations in California by nearly eliminating all
cooperation and communication with our law enforcement partners in the state,
voiding the delegated authority that the Orange County Sheriff’s Office has
under the 287g program, and prohibiting local law enforcement from contracting
with the federal government to house detainees.
ICE
will have no choice but to conduct at-large arrests in local neighborhoods and
at worksites, which will inevitably result in additional collateral arrests,
instead of focusing on arrests at jails and prisons where transfers are safer
for ICE officers and the community. ICE will also likely have to detain
individuals arrested in California in detention facilities outside of the
state, far from any family they may have in California.
Ultimately,
SB54 helps shield removable aliens from immigration enforcement and creates
another magnet for more illegal immigration, all at the expense of the safety
and security of the very people it purports to protect.
Despite the severe challenges that this law
creates for ICE, we remain committed to our public safety mission and we will
continue to do our sworn duty to seek out dangerous criminal aliens and other
immigration violators. ICE seeks straightforward cooperation with all sheriffs
and local elected officials. This misguided legislation will severely undermine
those efforts.
|
