"Sanctuary cities" — municipalities that refuse to cooperate with the federal government on immigration policy — have existed in the United States for more than thirty-five years. Over the last decade, various legislative efforts have been made to crack down on noncompliant jurisdictions. Still, by one count, at least 276 sanctuary cities exist in 32 states and the District of Columbia.
The debate over sanctuary cities was revived on July 1 when illegal immigrant Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez allegedly shot and killed 32-year-old Kate Steinle, who was walking along the San Francisco waterfront with her father and a friend.
San Francisco has some of the most liberal sanctuary policies in the country. In fact, Lopez-Sanchez acknowledged after his arrest that he was in the City by the Bay to avoid being pursued by federal immigration authorities. He had been convicted of seven felonies and deported five times, but after each instance managed to return to the U.S. and resume his criminal activities.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was set to deport Lopez-Sanchez when San Francisco police arrested him on drug charges. But instead of turning him over to ICE as requested and as required under federal law, city authorities let him go without even notifying the feds.
In the aftermath of Steinle's death, several bills have been proposed in Congress to end or discourage sanctuary cities. One would cut off their federal funding. Another, dubbed Kate's Law, would mandate long prison sentences for illegal immigrants who are arrested in the U.S. after being deported.
Something must be done, and this is not a controversial issue. In fact, those who favor leniency and relief for illegal immigrants who are not criminals should be the first in line to support severity toward those who are.
Polls conducted since Steinle's death show strong support for ending sanctuary city policies. A July Rasmussen Poll found that 62 percent of voters want the Justice Department to take legal action against cities that provide sanctuary for criminal illegal immigrants. Americans and members of Congress might be more amenable to immigration reform if there are laws in place making clear that those who immigrate in order to threaten public safety cannot safely commit crimes in any U.S. city.
Jim Steinle, Kate Steinle's father, testified emotionally before senators in late July. "Our family realizes the complexities of immigration laws," he said. "However, we feel strongly that some legislation should be discussed, enacted or changed to take these undocumented immigrant felons off our streets for good."
Proponents of sanctuary city policies insist that they allow local law enforcement to build trust between law enforcement and illegal immigrants, who otherwise might be reluctant to report crimes. Perhaps this is so. But it should be obvious that this concern does not apply to career criminals, who are typically the ones victimizing other immigrants and making that cooperation necessary in the first place.
The federal government has never accepted nullification of its laws by state or local governments in the past. It should not permit cities to pick and choose which federal laws they will comply with. The main products of the current arrangement are resentment, distrust, and, on sad occasion, dead bodies.
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