Attorney General Jeff Sessions said it would be “a mistake” for Maryland lawmakers to pass legislation that would limit law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
Speaking Monday at the White House, Mr. Sessions said the Justice Department intends to begin punishing sanctuary cities by cutting federal grants to jurisdictions that refuse to honor detainer requests from Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Cooperation between local police and immigration officials would help to get illegal immigrants who commit violent crimes off the streets and out of the country, he said.
Mr. Sessions commented on the proposed Maryland law, currently being considered in the Democrat-controlled General Assembly, after he was asked if he had been in touch with Montgomery County officials about an investigation of a brutal rape allegedly committed by at least one illegal immigrant at a local high school.
“Maryland is talking about a state law to make the state an sanctuary state,” Mr. Sessions said, sidestepping any mention of the Montgomery County rape. “That would be such a mistake.”
The House of Delegates last week passed the proposal, called the Maryland Trust Act. It would prevent police from inquiring about a person’s immigration status during a stop or detention, and would block jail officials from holding people solely for immigration agents.
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Supporters say the bill is designed to maintain trust between immigrant communities and police.
The state Senate is considering the proposal, but Republican Gov. Larry Hogan has pledged to veto it if it is passed. A veto override would require votes from 85 delegates and 29 senators.
Noting Mr. Hogan’s opposition to the proposal, Mr. Sessions urged state officials not to adopt the policy.
“I would plead with the people of Maryland to understand that this makes the state of Maryland more at risk for violence and crime,” he said. “It’s not good policy.”
Montgomery County last week was thrust into the spotlight of the sanctuary debate after a 14-year-old girl allegedly was raped inside Rockville High School by two men, at least one of whom is an illegal immigrant. Immigration agents in Texas encountered the man about eight months ago and issued him a court date for immigration violations. He never showed up and traveled to Maryland, where he enrolled in school last fall.
Some say Montgomery County’s sanctuary policy, which generally protects illegal immigrants from being turned over to federal immigration authorities, is partly to blame for the attack because the policy serves as the reason the man came to the area in the first place.
Preliminary hearings for the two men are scheduled in coming weeks.
• Andrea Noble can be reached at anoble@washingtontimes.com.
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