Around New England

Democrat-Led Connecticut House Approves Sanctuary State Bill

June 1, 2019

State law enforcement officers in Connecticut couldn’t hold illegal aliens on a civil detainer from federal immigration authorities if a bill approved by the Connecticut House of Representatives becomes law.

The House voted 79-61 to approve the bill on Thursday, May 30, according to the Connecticut Mirror.

Under the bill, state and local law enforcement officers could hold an illegal immigrant on a civil detainer if the person is on a federal terrorist watch list or has been convicted of a major felony, but not for any other reason, according to the Connecticut Mirror.

Supporters of the bill claim that illegal immigrants have due-process rights and that the bill protects them by requiring a judicial order, and not just a request from federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, before state authorities will hold a person who is in the country illegally.

Opponents of the bill say that illegal immigrants rightly don’t have all the rights of American citizens and that the measure would impede legitimate law enforcement investigations.

No Republicans voted for the bill in the Connecticut House. Two Democrats voted against it. Both are from eastern Connecticut, which is more pro-Trump than the rest of the state.

The Connecticut Senate approved a version of the bill May 15. No Republican state senators voted for the bill.