Blue state suing sheriff’s office for helping enforce immigration law

Washington Attorney General Nick Brown is suing a county sheriff’s office in his state for “illegally collaborating” with federal officials and the Trump administration to enforce immigration law.

Brown’s lawsuit, which was filed in Spokane County Superior Court, claims that the Adams County Sheriff’s Office’s holding of illegal immigrants in custody based on their immigration status, helping federal agents question people in custody and “routinely” sharing personal confidential information of Washington residents with federal officials “expressly violates state law.”

The suit cites a 2019 law called the Keep Washington Working Act, which prohibits law enforcement in the state from providing aid in immigration enforcement. Brown is asking the court to force the Adams County Sheriff’s Office, led by Sheriff Dale Wagner, to comply with the Keep Washington Working Act.

“Washington has the right and the responsibility to decide for itself how to use its own resources to keep residents safe and the economy strong,” the lawsuit says. “The State cannot stand by when elected officials publicly boast that they are breaking state law and putting their own communities at risk.”

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In a statement released by Brown’s office on Monday, the office said that almost all the sheriffs’ departments in the state are complying with the Keep Washington Working Act, except for a very select few.

“The Adams County Sheriff’s Office is illegally collaborating with federal immigration officials and aiding the Trump administration’s efforts to enlist local officials for federal civil immigration work,” the office said. “The lawsuit is to enforce the Keep Washington Working Act. The act is based on a simple premise that it is not the job of state law enforcement, county sheriffs, or local police departments in Washington to enforce federal immigration law.”

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Brown claimed in the statement that “late last year Adams County was engaged in good faith settlement negotiations with our office,” but “after the inauguration of Donald Trump, the county and its Sheriff’s Office suddenly hardened their stance, broke off settlement talks, and aligned themselves with an organization founded by a top Trump aide who is among the most virulent anti-immigrant voices in the administration.”

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Said organization – a group called “America First Legal” – is a conservative law firm founded by Stephen Miller, a senior adviser to President Donald Trump during his first term.

In a Feb. 26 statement released by America First Legal, the law firm said it was “taking action to defend Adams County, Washington, against the unlawful and abusive effort by Washington state officials to enforce illegal and dangerous sanctuary laws and policies and compel Adams County to violate federal immigration laws.”

“Federal law is clear: it is a crime to conceal, harbor, or shield illegal aliens, and it is a crime to prevent federal officials from discharging their duties. It is also against federal law to prevent local officials from communicating with DHS about the immigration status of individuals,” said America First Legal Senior Counsel James Rogers.

“Our nation’s immigration laws reflect the democratic will of the people, and it is outrageous that the State of Washington has been working to subvert it while at the same time facilitating the invasion of our country,” he went on. “It is even more disgraceful that the State of Washington would target one of its own counties because the officials there have the courage to follow the law and have been cooperating with ICE to help keep our country safe.”