UGA campus murder: Are there sanctuary cities/counties in Georgia?
Athens, Georgia, Athens City Hall, restored historic building. (Photo by: Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
CLARKE COUNTY, Ga. - In the wake of the tragic murder of 22-year-old nursing student Laken Hope Riley on the University of Georgia campus in Athens on Feb. 22, there has been renewed attention and discussion around sanctuary cities and counties. Many people have criticized Athens for being a "sanctuary city" on social media.
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Although there is no official definition, a sanctuary city, county, or state is generally characterized by laws, ordinances, regulations, resolutions, policies, or other practices that hinder immigration enforcement and provide a shield for criminals against ICE. This can be achieved through various means such as refusing to or prohibiting agencies from complying with ICE detainers, imposing unreasonable conditions on detainer acceptance, denying ICE access to interview incarcerated aliens, or obstructing communication and information exchanges between local personnel and federal immigration officers.
In the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, many states, including Georgia, enacted robust anti-immigration legislation. Georgia's initial major anti-immigration bill, which mandated individuals seeking employment or public benefits to prove legal status, was signed into law in 2006. Notably, Georgia officially outlawed sanctuary cities in the state in 2009.
Additionally, in 2011, a state law was implemented allowing local police to demand proof of citizenship from almost anyone suspected of being undocumented. The new law also penalized people who harbored or transported undocumented immigrants in some situations. Over the subsequent years, Georgia introduced legislation that restricted access to driver's licenses, postsecondary education, employment, and more.
Despite the statewide prohibition, there are so-called sanctuary cities and counties in Georgia, including Atlanta, Clarkston, Decatur, and Athens-Clarke County, according to the USCIS Guide. While specific policies vary by city, there is a general recognition of the importance of safeguarding immigrants from deportation and enforcing federal immigration laws.
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Moreover, as of February 2021, Cobb and Gwinnett counties no longer participate in the 287(g) immigration program. This decision effectively stripped police departments of their authority to enforce federal immigration policy.
In 2017, Atlanta's city council passed a resolution asserting that the city is not responsible for "immigration affairs," and in 2018, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms terminated the city's relationship with ICE.
Simultaneously, in 2018, Clarke County Sheriff Ira Edwards declared that the sheriff's office would no longer honor detainers set in place by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). However, the policy appeared to be changed back later that day.
Nevertheless, despite these local decisions, Georgia reportedly harbors the third-largest detained immigrant population in the country. The Georgia Budget and Policy Institute (GBPI) highlight that numerous communities continue to support the 287(g) program, enabling state and local law administrators to enforce immigration laws on behalf of ICE.
It's crucial to note that sanctuary cities exclusively provide protection to individuals accused of or convicted of non-violent crimes, such as immigration and drug-related offenses. Individuals convicted of violent or serious crimes, such as murder or rape, are not eligible for protection under sanctuary city policies. Furthermore, sanctuary cities do not offer protection from federal immigration enforcement agents.