Riverside County Sheriff speaks in favor of ‘sanctuary state’ overhaul bill

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) - Calling it essential for public safety, the state Senate minority leader and other advocates, including Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, unveiled a proposed overhaul of California's "sanctuary state" law today.

Speaking at a news conference in downtown San Diego, Sen. Brian Jones, R-San Diego, said Senate Bill 554 would do two things -- protect the public from "violent, felony criminal illegal immigrants,'' and mandate cooperation by local authorities in cases involving specific violent crimes.  

Jones' proposal is a response to state Senate Bill 54, passed in 2017, which limits local and state law enforcement agencies' involvement in federal immigration enforcement.

According to Jones' office, SB 554 "prevents local jurisdictions from further restricting cooperation with federal immigration enforcement beyond what SB 54 already prescribes. It also mandates that local law enforcement cooperate with (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) in cases where SB 54 simply allows it, ensuring violent offenders are not shielded from federal immigration authorities.''

Bianco, who announced his candidacy for governor earlier this week, said his job as the bill progresses in the Legislature will be "to impose some common-sense, some reason and some truth to what we are experiencing here in California, particularly because of the failures of SB 54.''

That law ``and let me make this perfectly clear, does absolutely nothing but harm the people they say they are protecting,'' Bianco said.  

Bianco said when SB 54 first passed, ``we told the Legislature of the consequences that were going to happen because of this.''   

SB 554 will absolutely allow law enforcement ``to make sure that we are able to prevent child molesters, rapists, murderers, robbers who victimize us, who victimize them, from being released into our communities,'' Bianco said.

The sheriff said SB 54 proponents have demonized local law enforcement, which ``has never been involved with immigration reform -- that is the job of the federal government.''

Bianco said that it lacks any reason ``for any person in California to say that we must release those people back into our community to molest our children again, to rape our women again, to murder other people again.''   

He asked supporters to be as loud as they possibly can in Sacramento ``to these tone-deaf people in that building that do not care about the safety and security of their constituents.''

As he stood outside the San Diego County Administration Center before a podium with a sign reading ``Safety Before Sanctuary,'' Jones said a group of protesters who gathered at the event and other critics hadn't read his bill.   

Those protesting could be heard shouting, ``When we fight, we win.''    Jones said that several months ago, ``the radical Democrats on the (San Diego County) Board of Supervisors passed an ordinance describing the county as a super-sanctuary county, to protect the most dangerous illegal immigrants in county from deportation.''  

Last December, supervisors voted 3-1 to restrict the use of county resources for federal immigration enforcement.   

Former board Chairwoman Nora Vargas said the policy ``is designed to ensure local resources are focused on addressing the county's most urgent needs, while protecting families and promoting community trust.''   

Jones said the policy effectively prohibited law enforcement from handling criminal offenses by undocumented migrants, making it easier for them to return to the county and ``continue their crime spree, regardless of how many felony convictions they have.''

Jones represents the 40th District, which includes numerous cities and communities in San Diego County.

Sen. Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh, R-Yucaipa, said everyone should feel secure, regardless of their background and that neighborhoods should be ``the sanctuaries for families.''

Ochoa Bogh, co-author of SB 554, said the bill would create a safer environment ``including (for) undocumented families who deserve protection from those who wish to harm them.''

Ochoa Bogh said many people believe sanctuary policies were created with noble intentions to protect law-abiding, hardworking undocumented immigrants. However, when those policies extend protections to undocumented violent criminals, ``they undermine public trust and safety for all residents, including those they are meant to protect,'' she added.   

``Communities lose faith in the system when they see offenders back into the streets,'' which leads to a reluctance to report crimes or cooperate with law enforcement officers, Ochoa Bogh said.

She added that SB 554 ``is a compassionate and necessary response'' to the challenges posed by sanctuary policies.   

``By refining these laws, we honor the original intent of protecting vulnerable communities, while ensuring those who commit violent crimes are held accountable,'' she said. ``Together, we can create a California where safety and justice prevails for everyone.''