Harris County commissioners have chosen to stay out of a legal challenge to Texas’ controversial “sanctuary cities” law. A motion by Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis to authorize the county to join the lawsuit against Senate Bill 4 failed July 11 at the Harris County Commissioners Court meeting.
After the meeting, County Judge Ed Emmett said the motion could be brought back at a later date, but he thought it was unlikely. He said both during and after the meeting that residents should not interpret a reluctance to join the suit as an endorsement of the law by Harris County.
“Clearly, the ‘show-me-your-papers aspect’ of Senate Bill 4 is a vast overreach,” Emmett said. “The second aspect is the role of the county.”
Emmett said counties operate less independently than cities and he worried about the legality of a suit from Harris County. Precinct 2 Commissioner Jack Morman said it is bad precedent to sue the state.
“I think the county attorney has expressed some very valid concerns, not the least of which is the impact on [Texas Child Protective Services] and children [in families of mixed-residency status],” Morman said.
Commonly known as the “anti-sanctuary cities” law, SB 4 takes effect Sept. 1 and allows law enforcers to question the immigration status of people they legally detain or arrest.
The law also punishes officials who do not cooperate with federal immigration agents by turning over immigrants, according to a Community Impact Newspaper partner, The Texas Tribune.
Houston joined the lawsuit along with Dallas, Austin and San Antonio in June.
“(The Houston Police Department) is not the Immigration and Naturalization Service,” Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said. “We are not going to start profiling people to determine whether they are here illegally.