On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Justice issued stark warnings to four cities, including two in California: start cooperating with ICE to reduce crime carried out by illegal immigrants or lose out on a new program designed to fight crime. But why the four cities were targeted remains a mystery and the DOJ appears to have gotten some of the most basic information wrong.
The four cities receiving the letters were Albuquerque, Baltimore, San Bernardino and Stockton. All of them seemed baffled by the letters.
"The city of San Bernardino is not a sanctuary city,” Police Chief Jarrod Burguan told the L.A. Times. Neither is Albuquerque.
More importantly, none of the four cities operate any jails. Nevertheless, the cities' police chiefs were given until Aug. 18 to comply with inmate detainer requests, grant jail access to ICE officials and ensure the feds are notified before the release of an inmate that ICE wants to take into custody. Those that fail to comply will no longer be eligible for the Public Safety Partnership -- a consortium of federal agents, technology specialists and analysts that assist communities in fighting crime -- the letter said.
The DOJ would not say why the four cities were targeted.