Report Meant To Shame Sanctuary Cities Ends Up Embarrassing Federal Immigration Authorities
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Federal immigration authorities have stopped issuing weekly reports on sanctuary cities, after just three weeks, following complaints that the reports were riddled with errors. Local cases that made the reports were all wrong.
The "declined detainer" report was aimed at local governments that did not agree to hold an inmate at the request of Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE.
The first report cited two cases in Philadelphia and one in Chester County, but city officials said it could match only one of the cases to its records and that person was still in jail.
Chester County couldn't find anyone in its records matching the case in the report. That first report also listed Franklin County, Pennsylvania as one of the biggest offenders, having declined five requests.
In the second report, ICE retracted the Franklin and Chester County information. Then in the third report, it listed two more Philadelphia cases that matched no one in city records. ICE officials acknowledged there were problems, but blamed the city.
This week, though, instead of the report, it posted an announcement that it was suspending reporting while it analyzed and refined its reporting methods.
"ICE remains committed to publishing the most accurate information available regarding declined detainers across the country," it said. "While this analysis is ongoing, the publication of the Declined Detainer Outcome Report (DDOR) will be temporarily suspended."
The reports were mandated by executive order, the same one that ordered the travel ban, which was halted by court order.
Mayor Kenney has refused to bend on the sanctuary policy, maintaining the fourth amendment of the constitution prohibits holding inmates without a judicial warrant.
His spokeswoman applauded the decision to suspend the reports.
"The motives behind the detainer requests were questionable and the data consistently inaccurate," she said in an emailed statement.
"We're glad ICE made a good decision and will stop issuing reports."
