Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
LAPD Chief Charlie Beck Endorses 'Sanctuary State' Bill
L.A. Office of Immigrant Affairs director Linda Lopez, Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León, former Attorney General Eric Holder and LAPD Chief Charlie Beck. (Photo courtesy of Kevin de León)
()
California Senate Bill 54, or the "sanctuary state" bill, has been one of the state's most talked-about pieces of legislation in recent memory, and it got a major boost on Monday when LAPD Chief Charlie Beck pledged his endorsement.
The bill, which was approved by the state Senate in April, and is currently making its way through the state Assembly, restricts cooperation between state agencies and federal immigration authorities. The California Values Act, as SB 54 is formally known, was introduced to the state legislature by Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León in December. The bill has faced some of its strongest opposition from the law enforcement community, including L.A. County Sheriff Jim McDonnell, who announced his opposition amid protests in March. (Quick reminder: the Los Angeles Police Department and the L.A. County Sheriff's Department are two separate entities: the LAPD polices the city of Los Angeles; the Sheriff's Department polices the county, and is also responsible for running the county jail system.)
Chief Beck was joined at Monday's press conference by former Attorney General Eric Holder, who was hired by the California legislature in January to serve as outside counsel for the state and advise on potential conflicts with the federal government. Holder also released a legal opinion on Monday outlining the legality of the proposed bill, and how the measure fully complies with federal laws and the U.S. Constitution. According to a letter Holder sent current Attorney General Jeff Sessions, California has the constitutional power to “prioritize its limited resources in areas of state concern," and the bill "represents California’s constitutional exercise of that sovereign authority.”
Holder also implored Sessions not to direct the men and women of the U.S. Justice Department to “defend the indefensible—the President’s inhumane and unjust Executive Orders," according to a release from de León's office.
Support for LAist comes from
“Our officers enforce criminal violations of state and local law and we are not responsible for the enforcement of immigration status violations,” Chief Beck said at Monday's press conference. “This Act allows the LAPD to fulfill its mission to keep the community safe, while still maintaining the Department’s ability to continue cultivating the trust of our residents." More specifically, the bill would prohibit state and local law enforcement agencies from using resources for federal immigration enforcement purposes.
Beck also spoke about the vital role community trust plays in his department's work, and underscored how the erosion of that trust amidst deportation fears also erodes public safety. “We do not want to lose trust, because we believe trust is the most important thing in policing," he said, according to the Daily News. "The ability to get witnesses to come forward, the ability to get victims to come forward … can be severely detrimented by civil enforcement of immigration by local authorities." He added that "this is not a soft-on-crime bill."
According to a release from the California Immigrant Policy Center, a statewide immigrant rights group, SB 54 is "one of the strongest pro-immigrant measures in the country."
"California is leading. California is doing the right thing. This is something that needs to be done nationwide," Holder said on Monday.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity. -
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
Monarch butterflies are on a path to extinction, but there is a way to support them — and maybe see them in your own yard — by planting milkweed.
-
With California voters facing a decision on redistricting this November, Surf City is poised to join the brewing battle over Congressional voting districts.
-
The drug dealer, the last of five defendants to plead guilty to federal charges linked to the 'Friends' actor’s death, will face a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
-
The weather’s been a little different lately, with humidity, isolated rain and wind gusts throughout much of Southern California. What’s causing the late-summer bout of gray?
Best of LAist