Los Angeles Jails Have Refused to Hand Over 25,000 Criminal Illegal Aliens to ICE

Federal immigration enforcement data obtained by the Washington Examiner indicate that the Los Angeles jail system has denied over 25,000 detainer requests from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, almost certainly releasing more criminal illegal aliens onto the streets than any other so-called sanctuary city.

The data has been released as Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva is changing policy to deny immigration transfers of new categories of even more dangerous criminals. Now, virtually no charged and convicted illegal alien criminals will be transferred to ICE in Los Angeles, forcing the federal agency to make dangerous and at times tenuous arrests of criminal aliens on the streets of the community.

“As the sheriff of Los Angeles County, I am responsible for everyone’s public safety, regardless of immigration status,” Villanueva said in a statement. “I will not allow an entire segment of the population to be afraid to report crimes to law enforcement and be forced, again, back into the shadows.”

ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Executive Associate Director Henry Lucero slammed the Democrat Sheriff’s commitment to open borders in a statement to the Washington Examiner, calling him out for the most severe attack on federal immigration laws on the part of a local or county official.

“I believe the greatest threat to public safety are the more than 10 million LA County residents who stand to be victimized due to the release of convicted criminal aliens by law enforcement officials, especially the LA County Sheriff’s,” said Lucero. “This makes it more difficult and more dangerous. Undoubtedly, multiple people will be victimized as a result of this dangerous position.”

Department of Justice programs enacted by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions provide guidelines for federal authorities to enforce immigration laws in left-wing sanctuary cities, going above their usual duties if necessary to ensure that the most dangerous criminal aliens are apprehended with the assistance of local law enforcement or not.

Los Angeles’ free pass to criminal aliens is willing subversion of American immigration laws and the sovereignty of the United States.