US Department of Justice updates list of ‘sanctuary jurisdictions’; Philadelphia is the only Pa. location included
The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Public Affairs on Tuesday posted an updated list of “sanctuary jurisdictions,” a list that only includes one municipality — Philadelphia — and no counties in Pennsylvania.
In late May, the Sun-Gazette reported the department’s list included Montour and Centre counties and the borough of State College. That list, the department said at the time, was based on whether the cities or localities identified themselves as sanctuary jurisdictions, how much they complied already with federal officials enforcing immigration laws, if they had restrictions on sharing information with immigration enforcement or had any legal protections for people in the country illegally.
Centre and Montour counties are about a 45-minute commute from Lycoming County. Philadelphia is about 180 miles and a more than three-hour drive from Williamsport.
Officials in Montour County had immediately contested their inclusion on the earlier list.
“Montour County updated its prison policies (in 2017) to be in full compliance with the law,” Montour County Commissioner Rebecca Dressler told Bloomsburg-based newspaper the Press-Enterprise in late May.
Only four counties — two in California, one in Illinois and Baltimore County in Maryland — remain on the list found on the department’s website. In May the list included, in addition to Centre and Montour counties, nine other counties in Pennsylvania. In addition to Philadelphia and State College, May’s list included Pittsburgh, York and Gettysburg.
“I commend our partner agencies for continuing to collaborate … in finding, arresting and removing these individuals,” Brian McShane, director of ICE’s enforcement office in Philadelphia, told wire service The Center Square. “By working together, we are able to leverage our collective resources and expertise to apprehend dangerous criminals and uphold the law. Our partnerships are essential in our mission to protect the public and maintain the integrity of our immigration system.”