Al Zucaro, the immigration lawyer, in support of the “Stop Sanctuary Cities Act”

1. Al Zucaro, the immigration lawyer, in support of 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 police’s time would be better spent putting priority on people who are a danger to U.S. society.

2. 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.