The Battle Against Sanctuary State Bill SB 54: Lomita, California

I am a member of a broad coalition of Californians who are opposed to illegal immigration, and particularly to an upcoming piece legislation headed for the State Assembly Appropriations Committee.

The bill is SB 54, officially titled "The California Values Act", but would be better referred to as the Sanctuary State Bill.

This legislation, if passed, would forbid law enforcement–from local to state–from cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers (ICE).

This bill would shield illegal aliens captured and incarcerated in our jails from being reported to the proper authorities for detention and deportation.

Here are a  umber of reasons why I urge the city of Lomita to issue an official letter of opposition to SB 54:

1. The legislation rewards lawbreakers who have broken into our country by allowing them to remain in the country.
2. It would send a signal to illegal aliens all over the country, and throughout the world, that they can break into the United States, commit a crime, yet be released back onto our streets without fear of deportation–to commit more crimes, when these illegals should not be in the country in the first place.
3. An average of 20 Americans are killed by illegal aliens in our country. Allowing them to remain in the country after committing a serious crime will only invite more death and destruction at the hands of illegal aliens. This rampant disregard for the life and well-being of California citizenry cannot be tolerated.
4. The criminal offenders who would be shielded from deportation include all misdemeanor crimes as well as serious felonies such as rape by intoxication, voter fraud, ID theft, human trafficking, possession of an explosive, etc.
5. Illegal aliens are draining our public institutions, from public schools to our hospitals and our welfare programs and even our jails. We must not permit them to remain in our state or country under any circumstance.
6. This legislation will lead to massive federal funding cuts from the federal government. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has sent a loud and clear message to all sanctuary jurisdictions that if they refuse to comply with federal immigration laws, they will lose countless millions (if not billions) of dollars in federal funding and grants.
7. This bill is opposed by wide sectors of the California law enforcement community, particularly Sheriff Jim McDonnell of Los Angeles County because the bill would hinder essential sharing of data and cooperation of state and federal issues to combat serious crimes.
8. For those who are sympathetic to the plight of illegal aliens in our state, this bill would force ICE officials to bypass the jails and enter directly into communities to apprehend illegal aliens charged with other serious crimes. These actions will in turn lead to the capture of more illegals who have no other crime on their record besides illegal entry and unlawful presence in our state and our nation.
9. The increasing presence of ICE officials in our cities and throughout our state will endanger the lives of law enforcement and create an unwarranted, unprecedented intrusion of en masse police actions in our communities, and could risk more injury and death against law enforcement officers as well as private citizens.