SB4, recently signed by Greg Abbott, will become effective September 1, 2017. SB4 is bad law. Police Chiefs in Dallas, Arlington, Fort Worth, Austin, Houston and San Antonio all signed a letter expressing united opposition to this bill. This is what it does:
– It encourages profiling of people based on immigration status and will undermine the public safety of local communities;
– It will force law enforcement officers in Texas to honor federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainers, which courts have already concluded put local jurisdictions at risk of legal liability for violating the Constitution;
– It is a direct attack on local police and sheriff’s authority to keep their own communities safe: the bill imposes stiff penalties, including jail time and removal from office if a local official refuses to honor a detainer or to participate in federal immigration enforcement;
– We fully expect this to result in court challenges as the state of Texas tries to force localities to act contrary to the Constitution.
– State and local police are more effective when they are able to work WITH immigrant communities to keep us safe rather than acting as a ‘deportation force.’
American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) condemns the enactment of Texas Senate Bill 4.
