`Sanctuary city issue surfaces in race for League city mayor
June 2, 2008, 4:16PM
'Sanctuary city' issue surfaces in race for League City mayor
Candidate wants to address how illegal immigrants are handled by police
By THAYER EVANS
Chronicle Correspondent
With less than two weeks remaining until League City's mayoral runoff, the focus of the race has shifted to the city's stance on illegal immigration.
When an illegal immigrant is arrested in League City for a Class B misdemeanor or above, the police department contacts U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the person is then transported to the Galveston County jail, assistant police chief Gary Ratliff said. The city also contacts immigration officials for illegal immigrants arrested on a Class C misdemeanor, but if they don't have an outstanding warrant, they are released after the charge has been resolved, he said.
The practice is standard procedure, but is not a written policy, Ratliff said.
If elected, Chris Mallios said he would push for an ordinance that establishes that League City is not a "sanctuary city." He would like it to address how the city's police department should handle the arrests of illegal immigrants.
"There is not any clear path right now," said Mallios, 48, a retired Galveston County employee. "That's why I want to establish an ordinance so that we have guidelines."
Although there is no universal definition for "sanctuary city," most cities considered to be such have adopted "a don't ask-don't tell" policy that doesn't require their employees, such as police officers, to report illegal immigrants to federal officials, according to a report by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service.
During the city's June 14 runoff, voters will decide between Mallios and Toni Randall, 45, owner of a Kemah hardware store, for a three-year term.
Randall received 533 more votes than Mallios in the city's May 10 election, but did not receive the majority of votes cast, which is required to win.
Current first-term Mayor Jerry Shults failed to make the runoff after finishing last in the three-candidate race.
Randall declined to say whether the city should take an official stance on the "sanctuary city" debate.
"I'm not going to feel comfortable answering that, because I feel 'sanctuary city' is a term that is used lightly," she said. "I think a lot of the citizens don't know what 'sanctuary city' means. That's where my concern comes in."
Mallios said he believes that all illegal immigrants who are arrested in League City should be deported.
"If they are not here legally, then they need to go through the process to be expelled or deported or tried and then deported or whatever that process would be," he said.
Mallios said the city's police department, however, shouldn't specifically target illegal immigrants.
"I'm not for wholesale rounding people up just because they look like they could be illegal," he said.
Randall said the "sanctuary city" debate is "a federal issue."
"Illegal immigrants are here," she said. "They're not just from Mexico. They're from all over the world and the federal government is having a hard time dealing with this."
If all of the illegal immigrants that are arrested in League City were deported, the city's crime rate would decrease, Mallios said.
It also would help reduce employers' hiring of illegal immigrants, he said.
"It affords the teenager who wants to cut grass to be able to cut grass," Mallios said. "It helps the community all the way around."
Randall said she does not condone employers' hiring of illegal immigrants.
"They ought to have proper documentation definitely," she said. "It's just the right thing to do."
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