‘This case shows how the noncooperation policies of one jurisdiction can have serious public safety impacts on its neighbor…’
(Claire Russel, Liberty Headlines) Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested a violent illegal immigrant in Montgomery County Maryland who had been convicted of sexual abuse and assault after local law enforcement refused to obey a detainer and released the immigrant back into the public.
The immigrant, Luis Fredy Hernandez Morales, posed a threat to public safety, said ICE’s Washington Field Officer Director Russell Hott.
Hernandez–Morales, 48, who said he was involved with a youth ministry in Springfield, Virginia, was charged with sexual abuse of a minor after allegations that he inappropriately touched the victim, a juvenile female, while visiting family in Montgomery County, according to a press release.
“We are committed to protecting our communities from the depraved acts of offenders with or without the support of local law enforcement agencies, but this case shows how the noncooperation policies of one jurisdiction can have serious public safety impacts on its neighbor,” Hott said in a statement.
The arrest comes just weeks after Montgomery County quietly reversed its sanctuary city policies after facing a massive flux of crime related to illegal immigrants.
Law enforcement there had prevented ICE from accessing local jails, but officials announced last week that ICE would be granted clearance to “identified areas” to “ensure that transfers rear conducted in a safe environment.”
ICE’s detainers are still being ignored. And ICE agents are still prohibited from entering secure portions of the jail for any reason aside from pre-authorized custody transfers, according to Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich.
Elrich signed into law its anti-ICE order last year, and shortly after seven illegal immigrants—some affiliated with the violent MS-13 gang—were arrested and charged with violent crimes. One of the illegals, a Honduran national, was convicted of raping his 15-year-old stepdaughter. Elrich ignored ICE’s detainer for the criminal.
Ken Cuccinelli, acting director of US Citizenship and Immigration Services, called out Elrich’s failures in September.
https://twitter.com/USCISCuccinelli/status/1170024214084161541
