Federal judge blocks Texas from enforcing 'sanctuary cities' ban

A young protester in favor of sanctuary cities.
(Image credit: MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images)

On Wednesday night, a federal judge in Texas temporarily blocked the state from implementing most provisions of Senate Bill 4, a "sanctuary cities" law that lets law enforcement ask about immigration status during routine interactions and punishes local officials who do not cooperate with requests from federal immigration agents to turn over immigrants for possible deportation.

U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia ruled that there is "overwhelming evidence by local officials, including local law enforcement, that SB 4 will erode public trust and make many communities and neighborhoods less safe." He did not rule against allowing police officers to ask the immigration status of people they detain if they so desire, but Garcia said police can't then arrest the people on immigration charges, and he halted the requirement that all jail officials transfer undocumented immigrants to federal agents, as that likely violates the Fourth Amendment.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
Explore More
Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.