WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Justice Department, under the Trump administration, Tuesday issued a memo targeting sanctuary city policies, instructing federal prosecutors to investigate state and local officials who fail to comply with federal immigration enforcement efforts.
Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, in the memo, emphasized the supremacy clause of the Constitution requires state and local authorities to follow the federal immigration orders, charging, “Federal law prohibits state and local actors from resisting, obstructing, and otherwise failing to comply with lawful immigration-related commands,” according to a Washington Post story.
The directive orders U.S. attorneys across the country to consider prosecuting noncompliance officials. Convictions could result in prison sentences, according to the memo, which announced the creation of the Sanctuary Cities Enforcement Working Group to pursue legal action against state and local policies that conflict with federal immigration enforcement goals, wrote the Post.
The directive follows Trump’s executive orders aimed at intensifying deportations, including for undocumented immigrants who have not committed crimes, said the Post, adding these policies are expected to face resistance from sanctuary jurisdictions that limit cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin criticized the directive, telling the Post New Jersey would continue to cooperate with immigration enforcement for violent criminals but adding, “My approach is based on well-settled New Jersey and federal law,” Platkin said.
The Justice Department memo highlights immigration enforcement as a national security imperative, connecting it to issues such as transnational gangs and the fentanyl crisis.
In addition to the memo, federal agencies like the FBI have been directed to reallocate anti-terrorism resources toward immigration enforcement. FBI Joint Terrorism Task Forces, some of which operate in sanctuary cities, are expected to assist in these efforts, the Post reported.
According to the Post story, there are nearly 650,000 immigrants with varying criminal histories and over seven million undocumented individuals in total under its monitoring. Critics argue that immigration enforcement often targets those with minor or no criminal offenses, leading to unnecessary deportations.
The memo also reverses Biden-era charging policies, reviving Trump administration guidelines to pursue the most serious, readily provable charges. Acting Deputy Attorney General Bove stated that these changes are part of a broader effort to prioritize immigration enforcement, said the Post.
