San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera announced today that he has filed a second lawsuit against the Trump administration over what he believes are unconstitutional new conditions on federal law enforcement grants instituted by the Department of Justice (DOJ).
The first lawsuit was filed in January, alleging an executive order aimed at defunding so-called sanctuary cities exceeded presidential power and was unconstitutional. A federal judge has since invoked a preliminary injunction halting the enforcement of the executive order nationwide.
The new lawsuit names US Attorney General Jefferson B. Sessions III, acting Assistant Attorney General Alan R. Hanson, and the DOJ as defendants.
Proud to join @AGBecerra today to protect the constitution and public safety. https://t.co/Sz05WwlLrL
— Dennis Herrera (@dennisherrera) August 14, 2017
“This president is bent on trying to vilify immigrants and punish cities that prioritize real, effective public safety over splitting up hard-working families,” Herrera said at a press conference this morning.
The lawsuit filed Friday in US District Court for the Northern District of California coincides with a similar lawsuit California Attorney General Xavier Becerra plans to file later today.
According to Hererra and Becerra, the administration's move will harm a range of local law enforcement initiatives if it's allowed to tie immigration enforcement to the DOJ grants.
The city's lawsuit stems from a July 25th press release from the DOJ that announced new eligibility requirements for a grant program that provides funding for everything from police cars and domestic violence shelters to services for at-risk youth.
Last year the program provided $263.9 million nationwide; under the new guidelines, California could potentially lose $28.3 million and San Francisco could see a loss of up to $1.4 million already slated for multiple city departments including SFPD, the Sheriff's department, the District Attorney's office and the Public Defender.
The memo from Sessions and the DOJ threatens to eliminate local jurisdictions' eligibility for the grants unless two new conditions are met:
- Allow federal immigration agents unlimited access to local detention facilities to interrogate detainees about their immigration status, and
- upon request, provide 48 hours' notice to immigration agents before releasing someone that the federal government suspects is in the country unlawfully.
Herrera argues in the suit that permanent residents and US citizens "could be jailed without probable cause, and cities or states could face legal liability for holding someone past their release date to provide the federal government the required notice."
“This is a backdoor attempt to coerce states and local governments to carry out federal immigration enforcement,” Herrera said.
“Immigration enforcement is the federal government’s job. They can do it in San Francisco and every other city in the country," he said. "We’re not stopping them. But our police and deputies are focused on fighting crime, not breaking up hard-working families.”
Herrera called the grant eligibility changes "part of the Trump administration’s continued misguided assault on sanctuary cities."
