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San Francisco and California file suit challenging DOJ grant conditions tied to immigration detainers
Summary
San Francisco city attorneys and California's attorney general announced coordinated litigation seeking to block Department of Justice conditions that would withhold Byrne JAG grant money unless local jurisdictions comply with immigration-related demands, arguing the conditions exceed federal authority and threaten public-safety programs.
San Francisco city attorneys and CaliforniaAttorney General Javier Becerra announced coordinated federal litigation challenging new Department of Justice conditions on Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants, saying the conditions unlawfully coerce local law enforcement into performing federal immigration enforcement.
City Attorney Dennis Herrera and state officials said the DOJconditions would require local jurisdictions to allow federal immigration agents unlimited access to local detention facilities and to provide 48 hours' notice before releasing people the federal government alleges are undocumented. At a press conference, Herrera said the conditions could force local jails to hold people past release dates and expose cities to legal liability: "The new grant conditions mean residents and U.S. citizens could be jailed without probable cause," he said.
California Attorney General Javier Becerra said the state would join San Francisco in the lawsuit. "We're fighting to protect the constitution," Becerra said, arguing the federal government is attempting to redirect locally controlled public-safety resources toward federal immigration enforcement. He called the conditions "a backdoor attempt to coerce states and local governments to carry out federal Immigration enforcement."
City officials said the threat affects a broad range of public-safety and prevention programs funded by Byrne JAG; the city attorney's office estimated San Francisco receives about $1.5 million directly (and additional funds indirectly), while the attorney general placed the state's at-risk share at over $28 million. Officials warned smaller jurisdictions could struggle to mount legal defenses if the federal government withholds those funds.
Mayor Ed Lee, who joined the event, called the coordinated action necessary to protect local priorities: "We're in the public safety business, not the deportation business," he said. City and state leaders said they would seek court orders declaring the conditions unconstitutional and void and urged the federal government to respect the separation of powers and local discretion over law enforcement resources.
The filings were described as part of a broader set of legal challenges this year to federal actions and orders concerning sanctuary jurisdictions. Officials said they would take questions from the media and pursue the litigation in federal court.
The legal challenge does not change any on-the-ground policing operations immediately; it asks a court to enjoin the DOJ conditions and preserve existing grant funding and the districts' ability to deploy those grants for locally decided crime-prevention and intervention programs.
