City Council
MEETING DATE: 12/14/2016
TITLE:
Title
Local Government and Immigration Enforcement
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FROM:
Charlie McClendon, City Manager
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
This item is presented for information, discussion and direction only.
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BACKGROUND:
The proper role for local governments, and particularly for local law enforcement agencies, in enforcement of national immigration policy has been a controversial topic for some time. Recently, with a potential change in direction from the federal level, some local jurisdictions are evaluating their positions on the topic. Councilmember Kaplan has requested that a study session topic be placed on the agenda to allow Council to learn more about the various positions cities have taken and to discuss the topic.
DISCUSSION:
The Cathedral City Police Department has an adopted policy (#428), which establishes the approach the department will take related to immigration enforcement. The policy has been in place since 05/05/16. Among the provisions of the policy are the following:
- The Mexican government's Matricular Consular is accepted as a valid form of ID.
- Persons otherwise eligible for release will not be detained based upon a suspected civil immigration violation.
- Persons may be detained based upon reasonable suspicion of a criminal immigration violation but race, ethnicity or lack of English proficiency alone may not form the basis for a reasonable suspicion determination.
Communities across the nation have taken varying approaches to establishing the role that local police agencies will take in immigration enforcement. The term "sanctuary city" is sometimes used to describe cities whose policy makers have decided not to participate in assisting federal immigration enforcement.
The Washington Post (September 7, 2016) offered the following information on so-called sanctuary cities:
"There's no official definition of "sanctuary," but it generally refers to rules restricting stat...
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