Just one day after a federal appeals court ruled that Texas can enforce SB 4, the new state law banning so called 'Sanctuary Cities,' the Texas Attorney General has begun enforcement activities, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
Attorney General Ken Paxton says his officer is accepting complaints from citizens or local government or college officials, regarding violations of the nati-sanctuary or detainer provisions of the law.
Paxton says any complaints have to include 'sworn statements asserting facts regarding the alleged violation,' which means people who file false statements can face perjury charges.
Paxton says he is specifically looking for evidence of "local entities and officials who adopt or enforce policies prohibiting the enforcement of federal immigration laws and detainers."
He says individuals who don't cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement can face misdemeanor criminal charges
.“The 5th Circuit quickly confirmed what my office and I long maintained: Senate Bill 4 is a common sense measure that prevents governments in Texas from standing in the way of federal enforcement of immigration law,” Paxton said. “By enforcing the key provisions of SB 4, we will prevent dangerous criminals from being released back into our Texas communities.”
Paxton even opened a page on his web site for complaints to be filed:
https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sb4/sanctuary-complaints
The Fifth US Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday upheld portions of the Sanctuary City law which require that local officials, like mayors, sheriffs, and police chiefs, fully comply with requests from ICE, mainly when they involve what are called 'detainer requests.'
That is when ICE asks that an individual who is held on a county jail on a local criminal charge be held for deportation proceedings, even when that individual's jail term has expired or they have been released on bond.
So far, there is no word on whether any complaints have been received.