More than a dozen California counties have stopped honoring requests from immigration agents to hold potentially deportable inmates beyond the length of their jail terms, saying the practice may expose local sheriffs to liability, the Los Angeles Times reports.
The counties include Los Angeles, San Diego, Riverside and San Bernardino, which have stopped complying with ICE detainers.
A federal court ruling in April 2014 found an Oregon county liable for damages. The case involved an immigrant from Mexico named Maria Miranda Olivares who completed a jail sentence, but was kept for an additional 19 hours on a federal hold at the request of immigration agents, the newspaper reported on June 1.
“Lawyers for the county argued … the sheriff was required to hold her. The judge disagreed, saying ICE detainers are not mandatory and did not demonstrate probable cause. The judge said the county was liable for damages,” the newspaper stated.
California counties are among 100 governmental entities across the country that have stopped the practice since the ruling, according to the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, an advocacy group.
President Obama’s immigration enforcement strategy could be impaired, say analysts.
Hiroshi Motomura, an immigrant law professor at UCLA, said, “It’s very significant because it represents a reduction of the involvement of local police in federal immigration enforcement.”
“It’s not just political anymore. It’s about liability,” Motomura said. He said the decision of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department was especially noteworthy. That is because of the large number of L.A. prisoners who could be affected by ICE detainer orders.
Federal statistics show more than 33,000 people in custody in L.A. County have been deported since August 2009. This is due to a federal program known as Secure Communities.
Fingerprints of inmates booked by local law enforcement are checked against federal immigration databases. ICE agents can ask police to hold inmates 48 hours to take them into custody.
In the fall of 2013, Gov. Jerry Brown signed the Trust Act. It instructs local officials to honor ICE detainers only when inmates have been charged or convicted of a serious offense.
San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore has stopped honoring ICE detainers after consultation with county attorneys about the Oregon case. He said it was too risky to hold inmates for ICE. Instead, he said his department will notify federal agents when inmates who have been flagged for potential immigration violations are released.
“If they want them, they can come and get them,” Gore said. “We don’t have to hold them for 48 hours.”
Sheriffs from some counties, including Kern and Orange, continue honoring ICE detainer orders, the Times reported.
Immigrant rights advocates have pushed back again detainers, saying they are unconstitutional and have eroded trust in police among immigrant communities.