Attorney General Jeff Sessions plans to renew his criticism of Chicago leadership over officials’ unwillingness to cooperate with federal immigration authorities by linking it to the city’s troubling level of violence.
Traveling Wednesday to Miami-Dade County, one of two jurisdictions the Justice Department recently cleared of having “sanctuary” policies that defy federal immigration laws, Mr. Sessions is expected give a speech touting positive effects of the county’s cooperation with federal authorities.
“I know that Miami-Dade will be an example of the good that comes from following the law,” Mr. Sessions said in a statement released ahead of the event. “We have already seen that: the same Independence Day weekend when Chicago suffered more than 100 shootings and 15 homicides, Miami-Dade also had a historic number of shooting deaths — zero.”
The Justice Department has sought to compel jurisdictions accused of having sanctuary polices that shield illegal immigrants, to cooperate with federal immigration agents by threatening to cut of federal grant funding for those that don’t comply with federal law.
Ten jurisdictions were asked by the Trump administration to certify their compliance with federal law this year after the Obama administration flagged them last year for potential violations. Clark County in Nevada and Miami-Dade County in Florida received letters this month from the Justice Department certifying that they comply with laws that require state and local police and sheriff’s departments to share information with federal immigration agents.
Other jurisdictions still awaiting replies from the Justice Department include the states of California and Connecticut; the municipalities of Chicago, New Orleans, New York and Philadelphia; and Milwaukee County in Wisconsin and Cook County in Illinois.
At stake is millions of dollars in federal grant money that is supposed to go only to jurisdictions that comply with section 1373 of Title 8 of the U.S. Code. That law prohibits policies that restrict communications with federal immigration authorities “regarding the citizenship or immigration status, lawful or unlawful, of any individual.”
Mr. Sessions will be joined by Tom Homan, the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, at an event Wednesday afternoon in Miami.
A recent survey of the nation’s biggest cities found an increase in the number of homicides reported so far this year.
According to data provided by 62 police departments to the Major Cities Chiefs Association, departments reported 3,081 homicides in the first six months of the year, an increase of 3 percent over the same time last year. Chicago led as the deadliest city, while homicide cases have spiked in others like Baltimore and New Orleans.
• Andrea Noble can be reached at anoble@washingtontimes.com.
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