{"id":14184,"date":"2017-06-02T09:17:52","date_gmt":"2017-06-02T13:17:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/live-immigrationreform.pantheonsite.io\/?p=14184"},"modified":"2018-12-28T12:47:43","modified_gmt":"2018-12-28T17:47:43","slug":"lawsuits-fly-over-sanctuary-cities-in-texas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.immigrationreform.com\/2017\/06\/02\/lawsuits-fly-over-sanctuary-cities-in-texas\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawsuits Fly over Sanctuary Cities in Texas"},"content":{"rendered":"

Heading for court, El Paso, Austin, San Antonio and other Texas cities are joining the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF) in suing the state over Senate Bill 4<\/a>, the anti-sanctuary law signed by Gov. Greg Abbott.<\/p>\n

The move follows a lawsuit<\/a> filed by the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) and two border jurisdictions: Maverick County (where the jobless rate is 10 percent and the major industry is an Indian casino) and the tiny town of El Cenizo (where many residents are illegal).<\/p>\n

Opponents of SB4 call it the \u201cshow-us-your-papers\u201d law. Abbott says it\u2019s nothing of the sort.<\/p>\n

There is no requirement to show papers,\u201d he told NBC News. \u201cIt does require sheriffs to honor ICE detainers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUnless you\u2019ve committed a crime and are wanted by the federal government, you have nothing to fear,\u201d the Republican governor said. (Watch video here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

Abbott said 142 charged suspects on requested immigration detainers were released by the Travis County jail<\/a> in Austin during a one-week period earlier this year.<\/p>\n

On May 7, the state of Texas sued Travis County<\/a>, charging officials there with being \u201cpublicly hostile to cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.\u201d<\/p>\n

The toughest anti-sanctuary law in the nation, SB4 imposes civil penalties on local officials who fail to cooperate with immigration authorities.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>RELATED: Sanctuary is bad policy<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

While preparing its lawsuit against Texas, MALDEF stated, apparently without irony: \u201cWe hope that both the governor and the attorney general will seek treatment for an apparent problem with premature litigation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Haha!<\/p>\n

San Antonio \u2013 which has not officially declared itself a sanctuary city but behaves as one \u2013 joined the legal fracas last week<\/a> and dug into taxpayers\u2019 pockets to provide $150,000 in legal aid to illegal immigrants there. The City Council acted behind closed doors, with no public hearing.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe fought Senate Bill 4 at the Legislature, and now we will fight it in the courtroom,\u201d Councilman Rey Salda\u00f1a said later, after praising his father for entering the U.S. illegally.<\/p>\n

Along with the immigrant-heavy cities of Houston, El Paso, Dallas, Fort Worth and Austin, San Antonio carries among the highest municipal debt<\/a> in the nation.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>San Antonio activist George Rodriguez, a former LULAC member, was among those perplexed by the city\u2019s lurch into litigation.<\/p>\n

\u201cMayor Ivy Taylor and other city leaders claim that San Antonio, which has not officially been declared a sanctuary city. If so, why join a lawsuit over a law that does not affect the city?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe money they\u2019re spending on legal fights could be better used for fixing streets and sidewalks.\u201d<\/p>\n

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