Madison, Wisconsin.. Democrats across the country are proposing changes to state law to rein them in Federal immigration officers And then protect the public Death by shooting A protester in Minneapolis and two people injured in Portland, Oregon.
It has many measures It was suggested in some way For years in Democratic-led statesBut their momentum is growing as legislatures return to work amid President Donald Trump National Immigration Campaign After Renee Judd was killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Minneapolis. Republicans are backing down Blame the protesters To obstruct Immigration enforcement.
Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York wants to allow people to sue federal officials who claim their constitutional rights are violated. Another measure aims to keep immigration officials who lack warrants out of schools, hospitals and places of worship.
Oregon Democrats plan to introduce a bill to allow residents to sue federal agents for violating their Fourth Amendment rights against unlawful search and seizure.
New Jersey’s Democratic-led Legislature on Monday passed three bills that immigrant rights groups have long pushed for, including a measure that would prohibit state law enforcement officers from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement. Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy has until his last day in office on Tuesday to sign or veto it.
California lawmakers are proposing to ban local and state law enforcement from taking second jobs at the Department of Homeland Security and make it a violation of state law when ICE officers make “random” arrests during court appearances. Other measures are pending.
“When you have government actions without accountability, that’s not true democracy,” Democratic state Sen. Scott Wiener of San Francisco said at a news conference.
Georgia Democrats have introduced four Senate bills aimed at curbing immigration enforcement — a package that is unlikely to become law because Georgia’s conservative Senate is led by Lt. Gov. Bert Jones, a close Trump ally. Democrats said it was still important to take a stand.
“Donald Trump has unleashed a brutal aggression on our families and communities across our country,” said state Sen. Sheikh Rahman, a Bangladeshi immigrant whose district in suburban Atlanta’s Gwinnett County is home to many immigrants.
Democrats in New Hampshire have proposed several measures that seek to limit federal immigration enforcement, but the state’s Republican majority has passed a new law taking effect this month banning “sanctuary cities.”
And in Tennessee, instead of considering a Democratic measure that would limit civil immigration enforcement in schools and churches, Republican House Speaker Cameron Sexton said he was working with the White House on a separate package of immigration-related bills. He did not say what they would do.
the Trump administration He opposed any effort to weaken ICE, including suing local governments that… “Sanctuary” policies. Limit police interactions with federal officers.
States have broad authority to regulate within their borders unless prohibited by the U.S. Constitution, but many of these laws raise new issues for courts to resolve, said Harrison Stark, senior counsel at the State Democracy Research Initiative at the University of Wisconsin Law School.
“There is no clear, concrete legal answer to many of these questions,” he said. “There will almost certainly be federal lawsuits over a lot of these policies.”
This is already happening.
In September, California was the first state to bar most law enforcement officials, including federal immigration agents, from entering. Cover their faces on duty. The Justice Department said its agents would not comply He filed a lawsuit against CaliforniaArguing that the laws threaten the safety of officers who face “unprecedented” harassment, defamation and violence.
Ministry of Justice He also filed a lawsuit against Illinois Last month, he challenged a law that bans federal civil detentions near courthouses, protects medical records and regulates how universities and day care centers manage information about immigration status. The Justice Department claims the law is unconstitutional and also threatens the safety of federal officers.
Minnesota and Illinois, joined by their largest cities, He filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration this week. Minneapolis and Minnesota accuse the Republican administration of violating free speech rights by punishing a progressive state that favors Democrats and welcomes immigrants. Illinois and Chicago claim that “Operation Midway Blitz” made residents afraid to leave their homes.
Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin accused Minnesota officials of ignoring public safety and called the Illinois lawsuit “baseless.”
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Associated Press writers John O’Connor in Springfield, Illinois; Sophie Austin in Sacramento, California; Mike Catalini in Trenton, New Jersey; Jonathan Mathis in Nashville, Tennessee; Anthony Izaguirre in Albany, New York; Claire Rush in Portland, Oregon; Jeff Amy in Atlanta contributed.