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San Francisco retains immigrant sanctuary protections

25 May 2016 05:29 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. San Francisco leaders have retained strict protections for people who are in the country illegally, with clarifications, APA reports quoting the Washington Post.

The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Tuesday for a measure calling for law officers to notify Immigration and Customs Enforcement if a defendant is charged with a violent crime and has been convicted of a violent crime within the past seven years.

The measure also allows leeway for the city’s sheriff to consider contacting federal immigration authorities in the cases of defendants charged with a felony if they have been convicted of other crimes in the past.

The vote Tuesday by the Board of Supervisors came nearly a year after a Mexican national was accused of killing a woman along a popular pier. The slaying sparked a national debate on how to handle criminal suspects in the U.S. illegally.

Advocates of sanctuary protections say a clear division between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities is needed to foster trust. The law dates back to 1989.

The proposal’s main sponsor, Supervisor John Avalos, and Sheriff Vicki Hennessy had been deadlocked on the issue for weeks as she sought greater discretion to work with ICE. As a constitutionally elected officer, she does not have to follow board orders.