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Massachusetts high court to police: You can’t detain immigrants for Trump

“A rejection of anti-immigrant policies.”

ICE fugitive operation team in Dallas, TX. CREDIT: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement/ Charles Reed
ICE fugitive operation team in Dallas, TX. CREDIT: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement/ Charles Reed

Local law enforcement officials in Massachusetts do not have the legal authority to detain immigrants on behalf of federal immigration authorities, the state’s highest court ruled Monday.

The Supreme Judicial Court ruled that holding people for the sole purpose of complying with federal immigration detainers violates state law, meaning that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency must have a criminal warrant for the individual before asking local law enforcement authorities to hold someone up to 48 hours beyond the prison time they’ve served. That criminal warrant requires proof of probable cause and a judge’s signature, a WBUR radio station reporter explained.

“Massachusetts law provides no authority for Massachusetts court officers to arrest and hold an individual solely on the basis of a Federal civil immigration detainer, beyond the time that the individual would otherwise be entitled to be released from State custody,” the court’s decision read in part.

The decision—which comes as the Trump administration is pushing forth an immigration enforcement agenda that aims to detain and deport suspected undocumented immigrants — was claimed as a win by the state attorney general’s office.

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“Today’s decision is a victory for the rule of law and smart immigration and criminal justice policies, and a rejection of anti-immigrant policies that have stoked fear in communities across the country,” Attorney General Maura Healey said in a statement.

The Trump administration often claims that so-called sanctuary cities, where local law enforcement officers do not collaborate with ICE, are making cities less safe.

“This ruling weakens local law enforcement agencies’ ability to protect their communities,” Boston ICE Field Office Director, C.M. Cronen said in a statement. “The dedicated men and women of ICE will continue to do our sworn duty to enforce our immigration laws and protect the safety and security of the citizens of Massachusetts’ communities.”

Yet immigrant advocates have long maintained that sanctuary cities work because undocumented immigrants would feel like they could report crimes if they aren’t afraid of getting arrested.

The case was decided on behalf of Sreynuon Lunn, a Cambodian foreign national whose charges were dismissed after Suffolk prosecutors were unable to move forward with a trial. The judge in the case didn’t release him because of an ICE detainer request. Lunn’s lawyer appealed to the state’s high court “to determine whether Massachusetts law allows a state court officer to keep someone in custody if there are no pending criminal charges,” the Boston Herald reported.

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“It is undisputed in this case that holding someone in circumstances like this, against his or her will, constitutes an arrest under Massachusetts law,” the ruling stated. “There is no Federal statute that confers on State officers the power to make this kind of an arrest.”

The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts hailed the court’s decision as a victory.

“At a time when the Trump administration is pushing aggressive and discriminatory immigration enforcement policies, Massachusetts is leading nationwide efforts by limiting how state and local law enforcement assist with federal immigration enforcement,” the ACLU wrote.