Rep. Jimmy Gomez and California Lawmakers Demand Meeting with ICE Acting Director Homan After Agency Enforcement and Deportation Threats
Washington,
October 12, 2017
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Jimmy Gomez (D – Los Angeles) and California lawmakers sent a letter today to ICE Acting Director Thomas Homan, demanding a meeting to discuss his remarks in response to the passage of Senate Bill 54, the California Values Act. The letter was sent as a response to his announcement stating that ICE will conduct raids in local neighborhoods and at worksites. “As members of communities that you have targeted, we are concerned by your statements and this administration’s repeated attempts to threaten California for passing laws that would help Californians,” said the letter. “Your statement is reprehensible and your department’s change in policy will wreak terror in our communities.” “Instead of protecting public safety, as Acting Director Homan wildly claims to do, ICE is threatening hardworking families as retribution for SB 54,” said Congressman Jimmy Gomez. “This policy will do nothing to make our communities safer and instead will terrorize law abiding communities, disrupt family life, and harm the economy. Targeting families while they shop for groceries, drop kids off at school, or go to work is fiscally and morally bankrupt.” The California Values Act allows state and local law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration agents if a detained individual has been convicted of one or more offenses listed under the 2013 California Trust Act. ### October 12, 2017 Thomas D. Homan Dear Acting Director Homan: We, the undersigned members of the California delegation, request a meeting with you to discuss your comments on California Senate Bill 54, the California Values Act. In your October 6, 2017 statement, you claim that "ICE will have no choice but to conduct at-large arrests in local neighborhoods and at worksites." You also state that "ICE will also likely have to detain individuals arrested in California in detention facilities outside of the state, far from any family they may have in California." As members of communities that you have targeted, we are concerned by your statements and this administration's repeated attempts to threaten California for passing laws that would help Californians. Your statement is reprehensible and your department's change in policy will wreak terror in our communities. SB54 does not "shield removable aliens from immigration enforcement" or create "another magnet for more illegal immigration, at the expense of safety and security of the very people it purports to protect." In fact, SB54 allows state and local law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration agents if a detained individual has been convicted of one or more offenses listed under the 2013 California Trust Act. We believe ICE should use its limited resources to target criminals instead of parents and hardworking individuals. California law enforcement should not be deputized as immigration agents to incite fear in our communities and undermine public safety. We request that you meet with us to clarify your statements and restore the trust in public safety that is necessary for our communities. Sincerely, Jimmy Gomez Zoe Lofgren Salud Carbajal Tony Cardenas Alan S. Lowenthal Scott Peters Linda T. Sanchez Grace F. Napolitano Juan Vargas Mark Takano Mark DeSaulnier Nanette Diaz Barragan Ted W. Lieu Pete Aguilar |
