As California moves ahead with policies intended to limit the cooperation that the state’s law enforcement agencies can give federal agencies on immigration-related offenses, authorities are starting to respond in kind. In recent months, agents with US Customs and Border Protection have refused to allow the transfer of suspects wanted for crimes in California.
The new direction is a break from long-established law enforcement protocols and is further increasing tensions between California and the federal government over the ‘sanctuary state’ law. For many years, until recently, whenever US immigration agents encountered criminal suspects at ports of entry, such as airports or on the border, they transferred them to state agencies as a matter of routine, but now, they are instead either charging them with offenses related to immigration, putting them in federal custody, or immediately deporting them back to Mexico.
Federal authorities are blaming Senate Bill 54 for the change, claiming that the law known as the California Values Act, approved last year, prevents local agencies from being able to give assurances that suspects will be given back into federal custody following the resolution of their state cases.
But, state officials claim the law does not prevent such cooperation in cases that involve undocumented immigrants who have committed serious criminal offenses and have accused federal authorities of distorting and exaggerating effects of the law.