The Department of Justice (DOJ) is directing federal prosecutors to investigate state or local officials who won’t enforce the Trump administration’s immigration policies, according to a memo obtained by The Associated Press.
The memo, written by acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, will reportedly be sent to the department’s workforce.
It instructs the DOJ to work with Sanctuary Cities Enforcement Working Group, which will locate officials that “threaten to impede” President Trump’s immigration plans and could even challenge them in court, the AP noted.
The memo represents a striking change from the DOJ that existed during the Biden administration.
Bove, who previously served on Trump’s legal team, wrote in it that it’s the DOJ’s responsibility to defend the Constitution, but also to “lawfully execute the policies that the American people elected President Trump to implement.”
The memo asked federal prosecutors to take necessary steps to protect the American people and southern border “by removing illegal aliens from the country and prosecuting illegal aliens for crimes committed in U.S. jurisdiction.”
Additionally, if federal prosecutors decline to prosecute immigration violations, they must be disclosed to DOJ headquarters in reports meant to update leadership.
If state or local officials obstruct or impede federal functions of enforcing new immigration law, prosecutors must investigate potential criminal charges. Charges could include conspiracy offenses or harboring of people in the country illegally, the AP reported.
The memo also rescinds Biden-era charging guidance, meaning the DOJ will return to a Republican-era principle of charging defendants with the most serious crime it can prove.
The AP noted that it’s common for the DOJ to shift enforcement policies under a new administration, but the memo outlines the significant changes that are expected related to Trump’s immigration policies.
As Democrat-led states and cities with high immigrant populations prepare for crackdowns and raids from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, some say they are taking measures to protect their migrant communities.
The Los Angeles City Council unanimously passed a “sanctuary city” ordinance in November to protect immigrants after Trump vowed to begin mass deportations.
