Dancer bill would prohibit ‘sanctuary city’ policies

By MARK ROSMAN
Staff Writer

New Jersey state Assemblyman Ron Dancer (R-Monmouth, Ocean, Middlesex, Burlington) says he will introduce legislation prohibiting “sanctuary city” policies that pose a threat to public safety.

In a press release, Dancer said the bill protects New Jersey residents, mandating state and local officials to fully cooperate with federal authorities with respect to immigration and customs enforcement requests, including turning over illegal immigrants to federal agents for deportation.

The assemblyman’s proposed legislation drew a rebuke from the director of the Latino Coalition, who said the bill addresses a problem that does not exist in New Jersey.

According to Dancer, numerous jurisdictions in California and elsewhere have established policies sharply limiting cooperation with federal authorities regarding illegal immigrants.

He said that in San Francisco, which he called a well-known “sanctuary city,” 32- year-old Kate Steinle was shot to death on July 1 by an illegal immigrant who had been deported from the United States five times for multiple felonies.

The suspect had been released from a San Francisco jail despite a request from federal immigration authorities that they be given the opportunity to take him into custody, according to the assemblyman.

Dancer said certain municipalities in New Jersey presently have an informal practice of not cooperating with requests from federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials to detain or hold illegal immigrants.

“We cannot tolerate officials adhering to an unspoken code that permits illegal immigrants to remain here once they have been identified. Law enforcement should be upholding our laws, not looking the other way,” Dancer said.

Under Dancer’s legislation (A-4740), a state or local official who fails to cooperate with ICE with respect to immigration law enforcement will be charged with violation of state law and will be subject to public officials’ ethics violation with the imposition of fines, penalties and possible imprisonment.

The legislation requires procedures to be implemented that make sure illegal immigrants for whom ICE has issued a detainer request remain in custody up to 48 hours to allow ICE authorities to take custody.

In response to Dancer’s proposal, Frank Argote-Freyre, director of the Latino Coalition, said, “Assemblyman Dancer is engaging in legislative over-reach by addressing a problem that does not exist in New Jersey.

“Every municipality cooperates with federal immigration authorities when it comes to apprehending dangerous criminals. What some municipalities have done is to refuse to dedicate local policing resources to identifying undocumented immigrants as part of their normal policing duties.

“Local police and law enforcement need to maintain communication with all segments of the community. Public safety is imperiled when local residents do not cooperate with local authorities because they are fearful of being questioned about their immigration status.

“Immigration enforcement is the responsibility of the federal government. Local law enforcement needs to concentrate on keeping our streets safe. Scapegoating immigrants and identifying them for special treatment by local police makes us less safe,” Argote-Freyre said.