Austin To Honor Federal Immigration Detainers
A Texas sheriff who had declined to honor some requests to detain immigrants in local jails says that her county now will comply with all such requests from federal authorities.
Travis County Sheriff Sally Hernandez said Monday that her policies had been updated to comply with the findings of a three-judge appeals court panel in New Orleans. Her spokeswoman, Kristen Dark, says that means jails, including those in the state capital city of Austin will honor all immigration detainers from U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents.
Hernandez is an elected Democrat who had announced on the day of President Donald Trump's inauguration that her jails would no longer comply with all detainer requests.
A Texas law cracking down on so-called sanctuary cities had been blocked by a lower court in August. But the appeals court panel ruled Monday that the state can compel local jails to comply with federal requests to detain anyone suspected of being in the country illegally.
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