San Francisco Considers Limiting Police Cooperation With Immigration Officials
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) — The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is considering legislation that would prevent local law enforcement from putting immigration holds on individuals scheduled for jail release.
Supervisor John Avalos said undocumented immigrants must feel safe to call police about crimes without the fear of ending up in immigration lockup or possibly deported.
His "Due Process for All" proposal would prohibit police or the sheriff from cooperating with immigration officials.
San Francisco Supervisors Consider Limiting Police Cooperation With Immigration Officials
"We actually crafted this legislation to make sure that we could improve public safety, but we crafted this legislation also on the principle that everyone should have due process against the arbitrary denial of liberty," Avalos said.
Last week, Avalos agreed to support amendments to allow immigration holds in limited cases involving violent crimes, guns and sexual assaults. Supervisor David Campos opposed any carve outs.
"The best thing that we can do in terms of public safety is to completely disassociate ourselves from immigration enforcement," he said.
The legislation has been pushed by the immigration rights activists who said undocumented residents will not interact with police if their reward for cooperating is deportation.
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