Town Hall Meeting Discusses Sanctuary State Bill

Photos by Marian Shapiro

A town hall meeting discussed Senate Bill 54 (SB54), the sanctuary bill known as the California Values Act, at the Unitarian Society with Sheriff Bill Brown on Thursday.

The Interfaith Sanctuary Alliance of Santa Barbara invited community members and local leaders to discuss SB54 with introductions and moderating by Rev. Julia Hamilton and Rev. Mark Asman.

SB54 was introduced by Senator De León in December of last year and essentially bars cooperation between federal immigration authorities and California’s local, county, and state law enforcement agencies. Law enforcement will be prohibited from inquiring about a person’s immigration status, detaining a person at Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) request, providing information about a person’s release from custody (unless that information is already public), and sharing any information with federal immigration officials unless they have a warrant.

There have been numerous reports of ICE agents staking out courthouses, schools, and even churches in hopes of detaining residents. SB54 will also instruct California’s attorney general to draft model policies designed to limit cooperation between state facilities such as schools, hospitals, and courthouses and federal immigration authorities. This is intended to ensure that California residents can use public facilities without fear of arrest from ICE agents.

Representatives from CAUSE, a social, economic and environmental justice advocacy group, expressed concerns about whether local practices from law enforcement target and discriminate against immigrant neighbors and the lack of support from the current federal administration.

President of the California Sheriff’s Association and Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown spoke in opposition to SB54. The state’s Sheriff’s Association has been the most vocal opponent of the bill, expressing concerns it will prevent immigration officials from going after violent criminals and increases the chance that a potentially violent offender who is in the country illegally could be released from custody.

However, some police chiefs and Sheriff’s support SB54. Los Angeles Police Department Chief Charlie Beck announced his support of the bill expressing that trust is the most important aspect in policing. “We depend on our communities, particularly the immigrant communities, not only to keep them safe but to keep all of you safe,” Beck said. “Without that cooperation we all suffer.”

Governor Brown has expressed concerns with the bill but has not yet stated whether he’d approve it or not.