King County Could Lose DOJ Funding Over Its Immigration Enforcement Policies
Just in time for the new fiscal year, Attorney General Jeff Sessions started making good on his promises to pull Department of Justice grant funding from so-called sanctuary cities. And on Thursday of this week, 53 Democratic members of Congress, including local U.S. Representatives Adam Smith and Pramila Jayapal, sent a letter to Sessions decrying those efforts.
In late July, the DOJ announced that it would, from now on, only award funds from the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program to those jurisdictions that promise to “increase information sharing” between federal immigration officers and local law enforcement. It’s a new requirement that runs counter to a number of Seattle and King County immigration policies. It’s also a grant program that both Seattle and King County have relied on for a number of years. In 2016, Seattle received $248,000 in Byrne grant funding for crime prevention efforts and King County received $203,000 for an ongoing program that helps reduce recidivism.
“We must encourage these ‘sanctuary’ jurisdictions to change their policies and partner with federal law enforcement to remove criminals,” said Sessions in the July statement. “From now on, the Department will only provide Byrne JAG grants to cities and states that comply with federal law, allow federal immigration access to detention facilities, and provide 48 hours notice before they release an illegal alien wanted by federal authorities.”
King County does not allow federal immigration agents to interview anyone in any detention facility or local jail without a criminal warrant, and does not ask the immigration status of detainees, meaning that it can’t (and, in effect, won’t) provide 48 hours notice to the feds.
http://www.seattleweekly.com/news/king-county-could-lose-doj-funding-over-its-immigration-enforcement-policies/
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