SAN ANTONIO – The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the ACLU of Texas has filed for a preliminary injunction in an effort to block Texas Senate Bill 4.
The bill has been at the center of controversy as it aims to punish so-called sanctuary cities for allowing illegal immigrants that are arrested but not charged to go free.
SB4 will make it a law that any law enforcement member must hold any arrested individual in custody until an immigration official can check the immigration status on that person.
Those cities who do not comply could be denied state grant money.
The law has recently been signed by Gov. Greg Abbott but the ACLU stated its intent to block it before it comes into effect.
“Gov. Abbott and his allies in the legislature enacted the harshest anti-immigration law in the country, ignoring the concerned voices of many Texans who stood in solidarity with our immigrant communities,” Edgar Saldivar, senior staff attorney for the ACLU of Texas, was quoted as saying in a media release. “Not only will SB4 lead to wholesale racial profiling, it is so vaguely written that local officials and law enforcement agencies are essentially left to guess whether their policies and practices would violate the law. We’re proud to lead the charge on this important next step in the legal battle to keep this calamitous legislation from taking effect on Sept. 1.”
Executive Director of the Workers Defense Project Jose P. Garza said there was concern about how Latin Americans would be affected.
"SB 4 will result in increased racial profiling for Workers Defense members and all Latino families in Texas," Garza stated in a press release emailed to The Record. "Workers Defense members are making good on their promise to fight Greg Abbott's 'show me your papers law' in court. This unconstitutional attack on Latino families will not stand."
Court documents claim that the bill overrides local governance.
“SB 4 is an extraordinary intrusion on plaintiffs’ ability to govern the City and County in the manner they deem best for their residents,” the court document states.
SB4 also allows victims of crime to sue the law enforcement agency that was responsible for releasing the arrested individual before an immigration official could intervene. That stipulation will be valid for 10 years after the release of the illegal immigrant.
The ACLU filed their motion in the San Antonio Division of the Western District of Texas.