Biden is suing Oklahoma over its immigration law that would allow local police to arrest illegal immigrants

Oklahoma has become the latest state to be sued by the Biden administration over efforts to make illegal immigration a state-level crime and allow local police officers to act as immigration officers.

A newly passed law, HB 4156, which takes effect July 1, would allow local and state police to arrest illegal immigrants who commit crimes in the Sooner State.

Under the mandate, any illegal immigrant arrested for committing a crime would be required to leave the state within 72 hours of conviction or release from custody.

However, arresting immigrants for the crime of being in the country is a power that courts have traditionally decided is the sole power of the federal government.

Currently, illegal immigrants who commit a crime in the U.S. are prosecuted for that crime in local and state courts.

Once they have completed their sentence, the illegal immigrant is supposed to be turned over to U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement, a federal agency, so that they can be prosecuted for the federal crime of being in the U.S. without authorization.

The U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday that it has filed a lawsuit to stop the Oklahoma law from taking effect after warning state officials against moving forward with the law or taking legal action.

“Oklahoma cannot ignore the U.S. Constitution and has set a precedent for the Supreme Court,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s civil division.

“We took this action to ensure that Oklahoma complies with the Constitution and the framework adopted by Congress for regulating immigration.”

Officials in Oklahoma expected a legal challenge from the Biden administration, which has already sued Texas and Iowa over similar laws.

“Unfortunately, this administration has adopted a one-size-fits-all, they are the federal government and they know best, all states are stupid and unconstitutional,” said Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond. local sales point.

Oklahoma City immigration attorney Sam Wargin Grimaldo speaks to a group outside the Oklahoma Capitol on Tuesday, April 23. Protesters gathered to show their opposition a bill that would impose criminal penalties for staying in the state illegally.

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond anticipated a legal challenge to his state’s immigration law as two other states have been sued by the FBI over similar laws

Drummond sought to allay fears that HB 4156 could lead to racial profiling, as the law only targets immigrants accused of committing a crime.

“If you are an illegal immigrant in Oklahoma and obey the law, I don’t worry about you. “I wish you the best of luck as you go through the process of legally immigrating,” the attorney general added.

However, immigration attorneys and other organizations that work with migrants have already been inundated with calls from both legal and illegal migrants who are fearful.

“99 percent of the calls we get are about what’s going to happen to me and my family now,” Tulsa immigration attorney Mosiah Olvera told a local station.

Despite the creation of a state task force to ensure legal immigrants don’t get caught up in law enforcement when they’re pulled over for something as simple as speeding, the immigrant community is already preparing for a worst-case scenario that comes with mom and pop not at home with their children.

More than 1.5 million migrants have entered the U.S. under President Joe Biden since October, according to federal statistics.

Migrants reach through a border wall for clothing distributed by volunteers as they wait between two border walls to seek asylum in San Diego

“You have mothers and fathers who sit their children down and try to explain to them, ‘Hey, if I don’t come home because I don’t have status, I want you to be a man. I want you to be a big boy.” I want you to be a big girl. I want you to take care of your brothers and sisters,” Olvera explained.

“The real estate we own, the papers are here. Emergency contacts are here. My little stash of money in case you need to pay bills is here. I want you to be a big girl and a big boy and take care of your brothers and sisters.” Those are the kinds of conversations that are happening right now.”

Like the Texas law, Oklahoma’s law faces additional hurdles.

The Supreme Court temporarily halted the Texas legislation from taking effect.

In addition, some police departments in the Lone Star State said they would not enforce the law.

The state bills seeking to crack down on illegal immigration come as the U.S. has seen historically high numbers of people arriving at its southern border since 2021.

A group of illegal immigrants sneaking into the country are stopped in Texas by a US Border Patrol agent

At demonstrations protesting the law, opponents noted that the legislation could have a negative impact on the state’s economy if migrant workers move to other places to avoid a crackdown.

“Everyone has had to deal with migrant labor, whether it’s the food you get at the grocery store, the restaurants where the food is cooked (or) construction projects,” state Rep. Arturo Alonso Sandoval told a local newspaper.

“I represent a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood, and I see the people paving the streets, the people building the buildings, a lot of that relies on undocumented labor.”