Nine governments that the Department of Justice has highlighted as possible “sanctuary” jurisdictions are expected to prove by the end of June that their local policies don’t violate federal law, reports Reveal. They are Chicago, New Orleans, New York City, Philadelphia; Clark County, Nv., Cook County, Il., Miami-Dade County, Fl., Milwaukee County, Wi., and the state of California. Most of the nine have policies against cooperating with “detainer” requests, but don’t limit officers’ abilities to “communicate” with immigration enforcement agents. Attorney General Jeff Sessions threatened to cancel almost $300 million in federal grants to the jurisdictions.
Some local law enforcement agencies have approved policies against holding a person in the local jail at the request of immigration officers via a detainer request. Las Vegas Police Department spokesman Jay Rivera said his department is already in the clear. Las Vegas Sheriff Joseph Lombardo made his case to Sessions. “As a result of that meeting, we were removed from that list,” Rivera said. Cook County, Il., bars employees from “responding to ICE inquiries or communicating with ICE regarding individuals’ incarceration status or release dates while on duty.” Spokesman Frank Shuftan said the county believes it’s in line with federal law.