22-year-old Georgia nursing student Laken Riley was beaten and murdered on a running trail near the University of Georgia on Thursday, February 22. The man charged with her murder, Jose Antonio Ibarra, was arrested for entering the country illegally in September 2022, but was not detained or removed. Instead, he was quickly released into the interior of the country. In addition, Ibarra was arrested in New York City for endangering a minor and subsequently in Athens, Georgia for theft.  In neither case did law enforcement coordinate with ICE to transfer Ibarra to federal custody for removal. 

Everyone loves the party game/icebreaker “two truths and a lie.” Can you spot which of the following statements about sanctuary cities is a lie?

A. The American public overwhelmingly opposes sanctuary policies.
B. Cities and states enact sanctuary policies in a variety of ways that don’t always involve laws.
C. Sanctuary policies encourage criminal aliens to report crimes to police, making communities safer.

A. TRUTH!  80 percent of Americans believe that cities that arrest illegal immigrants for crimes should be required to turn them over to immigration authorities.  Even in liberal cities like Chicago, residents oppose sanctuary policies. And yet, liberal politicians continue to demand sanctuary policies that endanger their own residents.

B. TRUTH! Sanctuary jurisdictions enact their policies through a variety of vehicles – laws, ordinances, regulations, or other practices – to shield criminal aliens, convicted and detained by state law enforcement, from ICE either by refusing to or prohibiting state agencies from complying with ICE requests to hold the alien long enough for ICE to take over custody, denying ICE access to incarcerated aliens, or otherwise obstructing communications between local and federal immigration officials. 

C. LIE! This is what open borders advocates argue to promote sanctuary policies. But the fact is, crimes against immigrants are reported to police at rates that match or often exceed those for crimes against U.S. born victims.