On Monday, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles, Mayor Karen Bass, and members of the City Council, claiming that the city’s sanctuary city statute was unlawful and requesting that its implementation be stopped.
According to the lawsuit, which was filed in California’s Central District federal court, Sanctuary Cities like the City of Los Angeles are impeding the nation’s efforts to address the illegal immigration crisis by refusing to cooperate or share information with federal immigration authorities, even when asked to do so.
More than 1,600 immigrants have been arrested by immigration officers who have arrived on Southern California over the past month, sparking demonstrations. The lawsuit claims that since June 6, L.A.’s unwillingness to work with federal immigration authorities has led to vandalism, riots, looting, and lawlessness.
According to the lawsuit, the situation got so bad that the federal government sent the US Marines and California National Guard to put an end to the mayhem. The Sanctuary City ordinance inevitably led to a frontal run-in with federal immigration authorities.
Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi described the sanctuary policies as the primary cause of the recent violence, mayhem, and assaults on law police that Americans saw in Los Angeles in a statement to Fox News.
Under President Trump, law enforcement at all levels is being undermined by jurisdictions like Los Angeles that disregard federal law by giving preference to illegal aliens over citizens of the United States, according to Bondi.
A request for comment from L.A. Mayor Karen Bass was not immediately answered.
The federal complaint was filed at a time when the city’s elected authorities were considering bringing their own lawsuit against the Trump administration to prevent immigration agents from abusing their constituents’ constitutional rights.
At its Tuesday meeting, the City Council will request that City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto give immediate legal action first priority in order to shield residents of Los Angeles from racial profiling, illegal searches, and detentions.
Bass has been vocal about the damage she claims the immigration sweeps have caused to her hometown, claiming that they have torn families apart and instilled a fear-based atmosphere in parks, churches, malls, and other places. She claimed that until federal officials started to appear at Home Depot stores, parking lots, and other places, the city was calm.
Tell him to cease the raids, please. This is an immigrant city, I want to tell him. Bass stated earlier this month, “I want to tell him that if you want to destroy the city of Los Angeles’ economy, then attack the immigrant population.”
