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Federal Appeals Court's Ruling Upholds Most Of Texas' 'Sanctuary Cities' Law

Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune
Demonstrators rally in the Capitol Rotunda against Senate Bill 4 on May 29.

A panel of three appellate judges ruled Tuesday that most of the state’s immigration enforcement legislation, Senate Bill 4, can remain in effect while the case plays out, handing a victory to Gov. Greg Abbott and Republican supporters of the legislation.

As passed, Senate Bill 4 allows local law enforcement officers to question the immigration status of people they detain or arrest and punishes local government department heads and elected officials who don’t cooperate with federal immigration "detainers" — requests by agents to turn over immigrants subject to possible deportation — in the form of jail time and penalties that exceed $25,000. 

The one part of SB4 that is still on hold is a provision that punishes local officials from “adopting, enforcing or endorsing” policies that specifically prohibit or limit enforcement of immigration laws. The judges kept that injunction in place, but said it only applies to the word “endorse.” The bill, as passed and signed, would have made elected and appointed officials subject to a fine, jail time and possible removal from office for violating all or parts of the legislation. 

Abbott quickly took to Twitter to update his followers, highlighting that claims the bill would lead to racial profiling were rejected.

"Texas Ban on Sanctuary City Policies upheld by Federal Court of Appeals," he tweeted. "Allegations of discrimination were rejected. Law is in effect."

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton also praised the ruling, saying in a statement that SB 4 is constitutional and protects the safety of law enforcement officers and all Texans.

“Enforcing immigration law prevents the release of individuals from custody who have been charged with serious crimes," he said. Dangerous criminals shouldn’t be allowed back into our communities to possibly commit more crimes.”

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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From The Texas Tribune

Julian Aguilar covered the 81st legislative session for the Rio Grande Guardian. Previously, he reported from the border for the Laredo Morning Times. A native of El Paso, he has a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Texas and a master's degree in journalism from the Frank W. Mayborn Graduate Institute of Journalism at the University of North Texas.
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