The Justice Department published a list of sanctuary jurisdictions in the United States, threatening legal action against the cities unless they comply with federal immigration law.
“Sanctuary policies impede law enforcement and put American citizens at risk by design,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi. “The Department of Justice will continue bringing litigation against sanctuary jurisdictions and work closely with the Department of Homeland Security to eradicate these harmful policies around the country.”
States listed include: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Minnesota, Nevada, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia. The DOJ further listed several counties and cities across the country impeding federal immigration enforcement actions.
The list’s publication fulfills a directive in President Trump’s executive order, “Protecting American Communities from Criminal Aliens.” The order called for the Attorney General, alongside the Secretary of Homeland Security, to “publish a list of States and local jurisdictions that obstruct the enforcement of Federal immigration laws (sanctuary jurisdictions),” and update it as necessary.
“It is imperative that the Federal Government restore the enforcement of United States law,” the order declared.
Although the Department of Homeland Security released a sanctuary city list in May, it was pulled following criticism from the National Sheriffs’ Association. According to National Sheriffs’ Association President Sheriff Kieran Donahue, the sanctuary list was “created without any input, criteria of compliance, or a mechanism for how to object to the designation. Sheriffs nationwide have no way to know what they must do or not do to avoid this arbitrary label.”
