Texas police chiefs start adapting to law
HOUSTON» Even as a new Texas law targeting so-called sanctuary cities remains in legal limbo, police chiefs and sheriffs are making changes to comply, rewriting training manuals and withdrawing policies that prevented officers from asking people whether they are in the United States illegally.
The law, known as Senate Bill 4, goes into effect Sept. 1 unless a federal judge in San Antonio blocks it. The law prohibits police from stopping an officer from inquiring into the immigration status of someone during an arrest or a traffic stop, and it requires local jails to honor all “detainer” requests issued by federal immigration authorities. It’s aimed at sanctuary cities, broadly defined as places that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
The state says the law promotes cooperation
HIGASHISHIRAKAWA, JAPAN
on immigration enforcement and prevents immigrants without legal status accused of a crime from being released. Several Texas cities and civil-rights groups sued the state, arguing the law is unconstitutional and vague, that it would hamstring officers trying to work with immigrants who are victims of crime and that it might inspire other states to pursue their own versions of the law. The state says Senate Bill 4 is different from the 2010 Arizona “show me your papers” law partially struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court.
U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia is expected to issue a ruling before the law takes effect. But if he doesn’t, or if he rules against the cities and groups that sued Texas, law enforcement across the state will have to implement the law in two weeks.
Texas hasn’t issued any guidance to law enforcement agencies on whether to change their policies, nor has it required training on how officers are supposed to implement it. But police chiefs could face fines or jail time under the law if they prevent their officers from asking about a person’s immigration status.
Houston police are drafting a policy instructing officers about their responsibilities under the law. Police Chief Art Acevedo, an outspoken opponent of Senate Bill 4, said officers will be required to file a report anytime they ask someone about their immigration status.
In part, Acevedo said, he’s concerned about a minority of officers “taking SB4 as a mandate and as a blank check to go out and become immigration agents.”
“We chase crooks, not cooks and nannies and day laborers,” Acevedo said. “I think that’s a view that’s shared by the majority of Texas lawmen.”
The San Antonio Police Department has made plans to rescind parts of a 2015 policy that says its officers “do not, and will not, ask people they contact for proof of citizenship or legal residency.”