DOJ to Investigate State, Local Officials Who Block Immigration Enforcement
The Department of Justice told federal prosecutors to investigate state and local officials who obstruct immigration enforcement, according to a memo sent out by Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove.
“Federal law prohibits state and local actors from resisting, obstructing, and otherwise failing to comply with lawful immigration-related commands and requests, pursuant to, for example, the President’s extensive Article II authority with respect to foreign affairs and national security, the Immigration and Nationality Act, and the Alien Enemies Act,” Bove wrote.
President Donald Trump signed executive orders designating cartels as federal terrorist organizations and ordered a crackdown on illegal immigration.
“Finally, laws and actions that threaten to impede Executive Branch immigration initiatives, including by prohibiting disclosures of information to federal authorities engaged in immigration-enforcement activities, threaten public safety and national security,” Bove reminded federal prosecutors. “The Civil Division shall work with the newly established Sanctuary Cities Enforcement Working Group, within the Office of the Associate Attorney General, to identify state and local laws, policies, and activities that are inconsistent with Executive Branch immigration initiatives, and, where appropriate, to take legal action to challenge the laws.”
Bove mentioned how the DOJ needs to step up its actions as directed by Trump in Executive Order “Protecting the American People Against Invasion.”
“Consistent with the core principle of pursuing the most serious, readily provable offense, U.S. Attorney’s Offices and other components shall pursue charges relating to criminal immigration-related violations presented by federal, state, or local law enforcement or the Intelligence Community,” stressed Bove.”
Bove directed each office to coordinate with the appropriate federal courts to tell them “of this interim policy and develop processes for handling the increased number of prosecutions that will result.”
Bove encouraged prosecutors to “charge and persue the most serious, readily provable offenses.”
“The most serious offenses are those punishable by death, where applicable, and offenses with the most significant mandatory minimum sentence and the most substantial recommendation under the Sentencing Guidelines,” he wrote.
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