Thread: Texas Governor working to abolish Sanctuary Cities

Linda chavez, imagin that. How does she take the oath of office one minute and advocate for ILLEGAL ALIENS the next? What a dits

Originally Posted by jean

Gov. Rick Perry has just designated two issues as emergencies for the Legislature: Abolishing sanctuary cities in Texas and protecting private property rights in eminent domain cases.

Abolishing sanctuary cities must be making Perry's pals in Austin upset. ANyway, it high time we started clening up cities like Houston, Austin, Dallas, San Antonio and all of the other cities that give safe haven to these illegal criminals.

Perry mum on how Texas can end ‘sanctuary cities'
Comments 0
January 12, 2011 3:24 PM

AUSTIN, Texas — Gov. Rick Perry wants to abolish "sanctuary cities" that he says provide haven for illegal immigrants in Texas, but he isn’t yet saying how he wants that accomplished.

Perry said Wednesday he doesn’t know yet whether he wants local police and sheriff’s deputies asking the immigration status of drivers pulled over. He declined to offer details about how Texas could get rid of so-called sanctuary cities that are in conflict with state and federal immigration laws.

Houston has long been assailed by conservatives as a "sanctuary city" because police there generally don’t ask about immigration status during patrols or investigations. The city has bristled at the label.

Democrats say they’ve identified more than 40 bills this session that would crack down on illegal immigrants.

http://www.valleymorningstar.com/news/t ... tuary.html

Proponents maintain this allows illegal immigrants to give information to the police without fear of being deported. Proponents also maintain it is not the job of the local police to enforce federal immigration laws.

Is it also not the job of states to violate federal law? By that token, aren't sanctuary cities in direct violation of federal laws?

If that means illegal aliens will no longer give police information about crimes, so be it.

I'm not so sure that illegals gave information about crimes in the first place.
It's not in their nature to tattle on their friends,relatives and coworkers.

Perry must be feeling like he is running under the shadows of Arizona, as he sure does take his time in acting. All these years and finally he is seeing the light?

Just wondering, is Perry a Democrat?

Originally Posted by elpasoborn

I'm not so sure that illegals gave information about crimes in the first place.
It's not in their nature to tattle on their friends,relatives and coworkers.

Exactly! They would only do so if it means a free pass for them aka "victim visas". There's nothing stopping them from phoning in crime tips anonomously. This should be a non-issue.

Perry: 'Number of cities' giving safe haven to illegal immigrants despite wishes of Texans
Annise Parker PAUL J. WEBER


5:24 p.m. EST, January 12, 2011

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Republican Gov. Rick Perry offered no clues Wednesday on how Texas might abolish "sanctuary cities" that he says provide haven to illegal immigrants, after ordering the new GOP-dominated state legislature make the issue a top priority.

Perry didn't get into details on how Texas should correct a "number of cities" he said are in conflict with state and federal immigration laws. He said writing a bill on the second day of a new session was premature, and didn't give an answer when asked whether he wants local police officers to question people about their immigration status during traffic stops.

"I don't know yet," Perry said. "We'll write the legislation over the next 140 days."

Katherine Cesinger, a spokeswoman for the governor, later sought to clarify that comment, saying Perry wants to stop cities from taking away the discretion officers have to enforce certain laws. Houston, the nation's fourth-largest city, has long been assailed by conservatives as a place that protects illegal immigrants because the city's police officers generally don't ask about citizenship during patrols or investigations.

Perry, when pressed about Houston on Wednesday, said residents there realize the city has some "policies in place that are inappropriate." He didn't name other sanctuary cities in Texas when asked.

Houston has bristled at the "sanctuary city" label. Mayor Annise Parker, speaking to reporters in Houston after Perry's comments, said her city's policies for police are the same ones followed by state troopers. She said she wasn't aware of a sanctuary city anywhere in Texas.

"We are going to continue doing what we do, and we believe common sense will prevail in Austin," Parker said.

Texas opened a new legislative session Tuesday with a historic GOP 101-49 supermajority in the House, meaning Republicans in that chamber can pass legislation with no Democratic support. Perry got thing started by designating sanctuary cities one of two emergency items for lawmakers. That puts the issue on the legislative fast track, whereas dozens of anti-illegal immigration bills in previous sessions withered quickly.

"There are cities in this state that have made decisions that they're going to be havens for those that are in conflict with federal immigration laws or state laws, and we're going to prohibit that," Perry said. "We'll have a good and open discussion about what we're going to prohibit."

Democrats say they've identified at least 40 bills targeting illegal immigration this session. The proposals include requiring local law enforcement to ask anyone without ID during a legal traffic stop whether they're in the country legally. Another would require school districts to identify students who are illegal immigrants.

Sen. Leticia Van De Putte, chairwoman of the Senate Democratic caucus, said Perry putting sanctuary cities on top of lawmakers' to-do list is another sign of the momentum behind illegal immigration proposals in Texas.

"I figured that one out on election night," said Van De Putte, referring to sweeping GOP gains in November.

But Van De Putte said she is waiting to see how "sanctuary cities" are defined before commenting on the push to pass a bill. She is opposed to measures she believes would complicate the job of police officers if people in the community, including illegal immigrants, were reluctant to come forward with information about crimes.

Arizona passed the toughest state anti-immigration laws in the nation last year. It requires police officers, when enforcing other laws, to question the immigration status of those they suspect are in the country illegally. Perry has said he doesn't support Texas passing an identical measure but has lauded the state for taking the matter into its own hands.

In Houston, Parker said her problem with Arizona-style laws is that it gives too much discretion to officers on the street in determining who might be here legally and who isn't. Parker said 20 percent of her city's population wasn't born in America, and that she wasn't just referring to Hispanics born elsewhere.

"Are we as Americans willing to carry and display, for any police officer who wants to stop us, something that proves that we were born here and have the right to be here?" she said.

Perry has not mentioned any specific bill since declaring sanctuary cities a priority. But one that seems to closely match his comments is Republican Rep. Debbie Riddle's bill that would deny state funding to local governments that do not enforce immigration laws.

Riddle, of suburban Houston, has long been one of the loudest anti-illegal immigration voices in the Capitol. She found Perry's prioritizing validating.

"This is the United States of America. Not the United States of Luby's," said Riddle, referring to a popular cafeteria-style Texas restaurant chain. "We cannot just pick and choose the laws that we want to enforce. We cannot pick and choose the laws we want to respect."

http://www.courant.com/news/nation-worl ... 5400.story

"Are we as Americans willing to carry and display, for any police officer who wants to stop us, something that proves that we were born here and have the right to be here?" she said. annise parker... please!! its called a drivers license or texas id. Why the citizens of houston voted her in.. i have no idea.

i Live in Houston. and I love this town. But i have a real issue with it being a sanctuary city. there wasnt enough people speaking up about this issue when it came to the mayoral election. maybe next time.

I hope Rick is serious about this.. cause he has been in office for a good while and hasnt done much.

state rep. Debbie Riddle is my hero!! I read the bill she proposed in 2010 and i loved it. here it is
************************************************** ***********
82R503 VOO-F


By: Riddle H.B. No. 17


A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the creation of the offense of criminal trespass by an illegal alien and to certain procedures for arresting illegal aliens for committing that criminal offense.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 30, Penal Code, is amended by adding Section 30.055 to read as follows:
Sec. 30.055. CRIMINAL TRESPASS BY ILLEGAL ALIEN. (a) A person commits an offense if the person:
(1) is a citizen of any country other than the United States; and
(2) enters or remains on or in any public or private property in this state in violation of 8 U.S.C. Section 1325 or 1326.
(b) An offense under this section is a Class B misdemeanor.
SECTION 2. Article 14.03, Code of Criminal Procedure, is amended by adding Subsection (h) to read as follows:
(h) A peace officer may arrest, without a warrant, a person who the officer has probable cause to believe has committed an offense under Section 30.055, Penal Code, if the peace officer:
(1) at the time of arrest, is acting on a reasonable suspicion that the person is committing or has committed another offense for which the peace officer, under the circumstances described by this article, may arrest the person without a warrant; and
(2) before making the arrest, seeks and receives confirmation from the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement component of the United States Department of Homeland Security that the person is an alien who is present in the United States in violation of 8 U.S.C. Section 1325 or 1326.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.


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