By George Lehman
Boston University News Service
Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell filed a brief in support of Boston’s Trust Act on Monday after the City of Boston moved to dismiss the federal government’s lawsuit against Boston’s sanctuary policy.
The move comes after Boston filed a motion last Monday to dismiss a lawsuit brought forward by the U.S. Department of Justice in September that claimed the city’s sanctuary policies “obstruct” the federal government from enforcing its immigration laws.
In an amicus brief filed Monday, Campbell argued Massachusetts has a “sovereign state interest” in determining whether local law enforcement assists in federal immigration enforcement, which includes U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“The Ordinance, and the City’s decision to limit its law enforcement officials’ participation in civil immigration enforcement, protects the local community and enhances public welfare,” Campbell said in the brief. “Thus, the Ordinance represents a quintessential exercise of police power that the Constitution reserves to the States and their localities.”
The brief references Lunn v. Commonwealth, a 2017 decision issued by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court that argues state law does not provide state or local law enforcement the authority to detain an individual “solely on the basis of a Federal civil immigration detainer.”
The Boston Trust Act, which was originally adopted in 2014 and reaffirmed late last year, prohibits the Boston Police Department from working with ICE for detainment requests on the basis of immigration status, unless ICE has a criminal warrant.
“Massachusetts law, especially Lunn, restricts the authority of state and local officers to arrest and detain individuals on civil immigration matters,” Campbell said. “Federal law respects those limits: it allows for state and local cooperation through voluntary agreements, but does not require (and cannot compel) participation in civil immigration enforcement.”
Boston was designated as a sanctuary jurisdiction on Aug. 5 by the Department of Justice in a list of “states, cities, and counties identified as having policies, laws, or regulations that impede enforcement of federal immigration laws.”
The DOJ sent letters to Wu and 31 other mayors and governors of sanctuary jurisdictions across the country in August, requiring those jurisdictions claimed to interfere with federal immigration laws to respond with a plan of compliance by Aug. 19. On that deadline, Wu said Boston will file an appeal in response.
Wu’s office has not yet responded to a request for comment on the brief.
“The Trust Act promotes public safety and fosters trust between local law enforcement and the communities they serve, helping to make Boston the safest major city in America,” Campbell said in a statement. “I am proud to stand with the city of Boston against this egregious attempt at federal overreach, as we work to protect the rights of all municipalities to set local policy like the Trust Act, that is consistent with state and federal law.”
Campbell’s office did not provide Boston University News Service further comment on the brief.
