The Trump administration’s Department of Justice is taking legal action against another sanctuary jurisdiction.
The DOJ filed a lawsuit on Thursday against Boston, contending that the city’s sanctuary status interferes with the federal government’s immigration enforcement.
‘If Boston won’t protect its citizens from illegal alien crime, this Department of Justice will.’
The agency accused Democrat Mayor Michelle Wu, who recently reaffirmed her support of sanctuary policies, of “repeatedly” shielding criminal illegal aliens from federal immigration agents and endangering public safety.
“In a recent letter to Attorney General Pamela J. Bondi, Mayor Wu went so far as to say that ‘Boston will never back down’ from its sanctuary city policies,” the DOJ’s lawsuit read. “Cities cannot obstruct the Federal Government from enforcing immigration laws. When that occurs, a city breaks the law. The City of Boston is doing just that.”
The department argued that the city’s sanctuary policies, specifically the Boston Trust Act, are illegal under federal law. The act prevents local law enforcement and other city departments from cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s detainer requests.
RELATED: ‘Flood the zone’: ICE fires back at Boston Mayor Wu’s sanctuary defiance
Photo by JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images
The lawsuit against Boston is part of the DOJ’s greater effort to take legal action against sanctuary policies nationwide. The department previously filed complaints in New York, New Jersey, and California.
“The City of Boston and its Mayor have been among the worst sanctuary offenders in America — they explicitly enforce policies designed to undermine law enforcement and protect illegal aliens from justice,” Bondi said. “If Boston won’t protect its citizens from illegal alien crime, this Department of Justice will.”
RELATED: Boston mayor vows to continue resisting Trump’s deportation efforts
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, President Donald Trump. Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Wu responded to the lawsuit by declaring that the city “will not yield.”
“This is our city, and we will vigorously defend our laws and the constitutional rights of cities, which have been repeatedly upheld in courts across the country. We will not yield,” Wu stated.
“This unconstitutional attack on our city is not a surprise,” Wu continued. “Boston is a thriving community, the economic and cultural hub of New England, and the safest major city in the country — but this administration is intent on attacking our community to advance their own authoritarian agenda.”
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