CA. Rep's Bill Targets Cities, Counties That Shield Foreigners from Feds
Murrieta Rep's Bill Targets Cities, Counties That Shield Foreigners from Feds
"Keeping American families safe is my top priority in Congress, (and) why I believe deporting criminal illegal immigrants is so important."
By Patch CA (Patch Staff) - January 13, 2017 4:56 pm ET
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RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA – A Riverside County congressman today re-submitted a bill that seeks to cut off all federal funding to cities and counties with policies that undermine efforts to deport undocumented immigrants who have been jailed.
"Keeping American families safe is my top priority in Congress, which is why I believe deporting criminal illegal immigrants is so important," said Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Corona. "There are a lot of complicated issues involved in fixing our broken immigration system, but deporting illegal immigrants who have committed serious crimes should not be controversial."
Calvert's H.R. 514, the "Help Ensure Legal Detainers (HELD) Act," mirrors a bill he introduced in October 2015.
That proposal, H.R. 3816, died in the House Judiciary Committee.
The HELD Act would mandate that localities "promptly respond" to U.S. Department of Homeland Security requests for information about detainees and "hold an illegal immigrant for up to 48 hours pursuant to an immigration detainer," Calvert said.
Local agencies that defied ICE detainers would risk their host cities and counties losing all federal funding for programs, including transportation, according to the congressman.
The Riverside County Sheriff's Department does not honor Immigration & Customs Enforcement detainers, but it does notify ICE prior to the release of a known immigrant offender, usually a couple of hours before he or she is set free, according to Assistant Sheriff Jerry Gutierrez.
Under Calvert's legislation, if municipal law enforcement agencies try to honor ICE holds but authorities in the host county do not support them, the cities would still be eligible for federal dollars.
Calvert sponsored the HELD Act in 2015 after details emerged regarding the deaths that year of 32-year-old Kate Steinle in San Francisco and 64-year- old Marilyn Pharis in Santa Maria, both of whom were allegedly killed by illegal immigrants.
Calvert's bill was one of multiple proposals advanced to crack down on so-called "sanctuary" policies maintained by cities in California and elsewhere. Most of the bills were spiked in committee.
President-elect Donald Trump has made the deportation of criminal illegal immigrants a top priority.
In the last three years, the Democrat-controlled California Legislature has passed several bills -- including Assembly Bill 4, the "TRUST Act," and AB 2792, the "TRUTH Act" -- which expand the rights of jailed undocumented offenders and expressly prohibit local agencies from complying with detainers, unless the targeted individuals have committed violent crimes.
"Congress should enact the HELD Act because we need local law enforcement to work hand-in-hand with our immigration agencies to better protect our communities," Calvert said.
http://patch.com/california/murrieta...oreigners-feds
