Local Authorities No Longer Violating Detained Immigrants Civil Rights

In the past decade the federal government has encouraged local governments to detain people that they believe to be in the country illegally, after the detainees have served their time for the crime they committed, so that Immigration Customs and Enforcement could detain said detainee. At first there was not a lot of resistance to this, because immigration was not a widespread issue, but today things are quite different. Since the beginning of this cooperation between the federal government and the locals, there has been some confusion as to whether it’s a request or a requirement. Many local sheriff’s departments complied at first, but now they are questioning whether or not it is worth it.

The issue is a matter of the detained immigrants civil rights. Anyone that comes to this country gets the right of due process. Even if someone is in this country illegally, they are treated with the same rights that an American citizen is treated with. With that being said, if a local agency holds an immigrant past their detention date, the local agency could potentially face a law suit. And with the recent influx of illegal immigrants, this is why many local authorities are deciding that they will not comply with the federal government. Holding someone after they have served their time is not something that local authorities want on their hands. A large population of local law enforcement officers agree that it is not about their opinion on the matter, but rather avoiding a lawsuit. The authorities that are deciding to opt out of this cooperation are saying that the federal government needs to create a policy that leave them in the clear in terms of a law suit. Until then, they are planning to keep the boycott alive.