Los Angeles area ICE officer with local police searching for convicted criminals. Photo from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Despite federal law (the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996) requiring local governments to cooperate with the Department of Homeland Security, the California Values Act, or the law more commonly referred to as the “state sanctuary law,” went into effect on January 1, 2018. This law directs all counties and municipalities in California to excise what are commonly known as "sanctuary” policies. Although the term “sanctuary policy” is not strictly defined, these policies generally direct public employees, including law enforcement officers, not to notify the federal government when the immigration status of residents in their communities might be subject to question. These policies generally do not make a distinction between legal and non-legalized residents. These allow persons with no legal status in the United States to fully benefit from city services (or, as in the case of the City of Huntington Park, even be appointed to a city commission). These further prevent notification of Federal immigration authorities when persons are arrested for anything less than a violent crime.
The County of Los Angeles and the City of Los Angeles both formally adopted "sanctuary" policies, prior to enactment of the California Values Act. Other cities and some school districts within Los Angeles County also adopted similar policies, meant to shield residents from federal immigration authorities. For the Almanac, with the California Values Act now state law, it became moot to list specific Los Angeles County jurisdictions exercising so-called “sanctuary” policies.
Also see:
-- Undocumented Immigration in California & Los Angeles County
-- Immigration, Long an Issue in California
