More than a dozen cities and counties in California have joined a federal lawsuit first filed by the counties of San Francisco and Santa Clara challenging the Trump Administration’s effort to compel local jurisdictions to cooperate with immigration enforcement.
San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu initially said when filing the lawsuit on Feb. 7 that he anticipated others would join the suit, which was brought in conjunction with several other jurisdictions around the country.
On Friday, Chiu said 16 additional jurisdictions had signed onto the suit, including the cities of Oakland, Emeryville, Santa Cruz and San Jose, along with the county of Monterey.
“Once again, the federal government is illegally asserting rights it does not have,” Chiu said in a news release.
“They want to commandeer local law enforcement, while strong-arming local officials with threats of defunding or prosecution. Their actions are illegal and authoritarian, and we believe they will again be found unconstitutional and unenforceable,” Chiu said.
Sanctuary status under fire
The suit alleges that the administration targeted cities and counties with sanctuary policies that allow undocumented residents to interact with local law enforcement without fear of being asked about or arrested based on their immigration status.
The Trump Administration has threatened to withhold federal funding from jurisdictions that do not work proactively with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to identify and help arrest undocumented residents.
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan referenced public safety impacts that could have consequences if the threatened federal funding is withheld, much of which targets law enforcement initiatives funded by the U.S. Department of Justice.
(T)he fundamental responsibility of government is keeping people safe — and to unlawfully threaten to withhold funding for programs like DNA analysis and police equipment makes us all less safe.
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan
“Unfairly targeting cities based on ideology goes against the democratic values that created this country,” Mahan said in a news release.
“The truth is, our policies related to immigration enforcement mirror those in places like Dallas, Texas and Charlotte, North Carolina. And that’s because whether you’re a Democrat or a Republican or anything in between, the fundamental responsibility of government is keeping people safe — and to unlawfully threaten to withhold funding for programs like DNA analysis and police equipment makes us all less safe,” Mahan said.
It’s about safety
Law enforcement in local jurisdictions all over the state have also said that abstaining from making people prove their citizenship when they interact with police has kept communities safer because undocumented people have less of a reason to fear talking to police about certain criminal cases their departments are investigating.
Monterey County Supervisor Luis Alejo pointed to the contributions of immigrants to the local and national economy.
“Monterey County values all that our immigrant workers and families contribute to our local communities and economy,” Alejo said.
The case, City and County of San Francisco, et al., v. Donald J. Trump, et al., is being heard in the District Court for the Northern District of California.
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