State sues to end arrests of immigrants at courthouses
SEATTLE — Attorney General Bob Ferguson sued Tuesday to end the Trump administration practice of arresting people for immigration violations in and around courthouses saying it is unconstitutional and interferes with the state’s authority to run its judicial system.
Among the hundreds of people arrested by federal authorities at courthouses across the state since 2017 were an assault victim, a domestic violence survivor seeking a protection order, and a married father of U.S.-citizen children with a pending application for legal permanent residency, Ferguson said at a news conference.
“Federal immigration officials are arresting people with no criminal history at all. They are arresting people who are paying traffic tickets. They are arresting people who are crime victims,” Ferguson said. “As a result, and not surprisingly at all, individuals are refusing to participate in our justice system.”
The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Seattle also asserts that when Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents patrol courthouse hallways and parking lots it deters noncitizens who are crime victims and witnesses from testifying and impacts administrative proceedings.
https://www.heraldnet.com/news/state-sues-to-end-arrests-of-immigrants-at-courthouses/?utm_source=DAILY+HERALD&utm_campaign=5e64370931-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_d81d073bb4-5e64370931-228635337
