On Wednesday, January 22, the House passed the Laken Riley Act, sending it to Trump to sign into law.
What does the act do?
The Laken Riley Act amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to require the mandatory detention of undocumented immigrants who have been charged with theft in the United States – even without a conviction. The Act:
- Defines “theft” to include burglary, larceny, and shoplifting and requires the Secretary to issue a detainer for any alien who is charged with, arrested for, convicted of, or admits to committing such an offense.
- Grants state attorneys general the right to sue the Secretary of Homeland Security or the Attorney General to enforce the Act’s provisions and other grounds.
- Prohibits the Secretary of State from granting visas to citizens of countries that refuse to accept the return of their nationals who have been deported from the United States.
- The bill authorizes individual states to bring costly and time-consuming litigation against the federal government whenever a state believes the federal government is improperly implementing many federal immigration laws.
- The bill would also mandate the unnecessary apprehension and detention of undocumented immigrants convicted of or only arrested for certain crimes, including low level misdemeanor offenses such as shoplifting.
Issues and concerns about the act
Many legal experts, including The American Immigration Lawyers Association, strongly opposes the Laken Riley Act. The Act raises serious due process concerns by requiring mandatory detention in cases where people have been accused of “theft” and other petty crimes. Other concerns and opposing views include:
- the guaranteed right to sue for states that disagree with federal immigration policy (including threatening the exclusions of visa to entire countries)
- The bill is unnecessary. Immigration law already mandates detention of people who have committed serious crimes.
- The provisions in this bill would allow individual states to dictate immigration policy for the nation by allowing states to sue the government. Further, a state could sue to cease visa issuance to entire countries.
- By allowing states to sue the federal government over immigration policy, the bill would overwhelm the courts with litigation from states. The bill raises constitutional concerns by providing automatic standing to states who file politically motivated lawsuits against the federal government.
- The bill will interfere with criminal prosecutions and individuals will not be able to attend criminal court hearings while detained.
- Detaining people who are unlikely to pose any risk to public safety is inhumane and unnecessary and will be costly to American taxpayers.
- Mandating the mass detention of people is not a meaningful solution and will not keep our communities safer.
Call or email our office if you have questions about this or any other immigration related questions. 206 292 5237 or [email protected]