Al Zucaro along with other

Immigration Lawyers urges senators

to oppose the Stop Sanctuary Cities
Act
Senators are being urged to oppose the Stop Sanctuary Cities Act by the
American Immigration Lawyers Association. The association also asked for help to
cancel the markup of a bill that would impose a federal directive on law
enforcement agencies, on both state and local levels, allowing them to detain
people by order of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Those who do not
comply, could face the possibility of losing millions in federal funding for state and
local enforcement of the law. Though the association is asking for opposition to the
act, some immigration lawyers like former city commissioner Al Zucaro Boca Raton
support the Stop Sanctuary Cities Act.

What are Sanctuary Cities?

Although the term has no legal meaning, a sanctuary city refers to a city in either
the United States or Canada that have policies in place that shelter illegal
immigrants. Cities that qualify usually do not allow for city funds and/or resources to
go towards the enforcement of federal immigration laws meaning local law
enforcement cannot ask about the immigration status of a person(s) within the
sanctuary city. The policy was enacted in Los Angeles in 1979 in order to stop police
from asking arrested individuals their immigration status.

Why the AILA Opposes Stop Sanctuary Cities Act

The AILA, and some of its members, are actively opposing the proposed bill because
they do not feel that it is the right solution to illegal immigration, or to further
preventing any crime. While the organization has actively been pushing for
immigration reform this bill is not what they expected. The AILA feels that detaining
people based solely on their immigration status is a violation of the fourth
amendment that says law enforcement agencies or officers must have probable
cause that a law has been broken to detain an individual. Having sanctuary cities
helps ensure that this does not happen. The organization feels that the polices time
would be better spent putting priority on people who are a danger to U.S. society.

Support of Stop Sanctuary Cities Act

While the AILA strongly opposes the Stop Sanctuary Cities Act, there are some
immigration lawyers who do not feel the same even if they are members of the
association. Al Zucaro, a former city commissioner who also established the Palm
Beach EB-5 Regional Center, believes that sanctuary cities are a direct violation of
the law. As is such, ramifications should be in place for those who violate the current
law. People who side with Zucaro feel that the argument that immigration reform is
needed does not excuse current laws from not being enforced, and for laws where
reform is needed it should be changed only through the legislative process.