An Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office consent decree that limits cooperation with federal requests to detain inmates suspected of immigration violations should be dissolved, the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office said in a federal court motion.
Liz Murrill’s office said in court filings in the Eastern District of Louisiana on Feb. 13 that the decree, which is more than a decade old, should be phased out in light of a 2024 state law. That measure, Senate Bill 208, mandates state and local law enforcement offices to comply with detainer requests from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
“Termination or dissolution of that consent decree would allow … (OPSO) not only to comply with state law regarding immigration detainers and public records but also to stop its obstruction of lawful federal immigration enforcement,” the motion states. “Such interference … only hurts the people of Louisiana by allowing for senseless acts of violence committed by people who are illegally in our country.”
The consent decree grew out of a civil lawsuit (Cacho v. Gusman) filed by plaintiffs who said they were improperly held in jail beyond their release dates as a result of federal detainers. A former sheriff, Marlin Gusman, opted to settle the civil action through a consent decree that put in place new procedures for complying with immigration detainers.
In a statement emailed to the Louisiana Record, the Sheriff’s Office said it could not comment on pending litigation that it has yet to review or receive.
“However, OPSO remains in full compliance with all applicable state laws and valid court orders related to ICE detainers,” the statement said. “We enforce ICE detainers when doing so aligns with our legal obligations. OPSO continues to operate under a federal consent decree and a court-approved settlement agreement in Cacho v. Gusman.”
Under the consent decree, the Sheriff’s Office honors all detainers when the cases involve serious crimes, including murder, rape, kidnapping, treason and armed robbery.
“Our office will continue to follow the law as directed by the courts while maintaining our commitment to public safety and constitutional policing,” the statement said.
Murrill’s office considers New Orleans a “sanctuary jurisdiction.” The consent decree bars the Sheriff’s Office from investigating the legal residency status of those in its custody and stops ICE agents from interviewing Sheriff’s Office inmates without court orders, according to the Attorney General’s Office.
Generally, local police agencies that limit cooperation with ICE point out that detainers often lack probable cause and that their cooperation can also divert limited local law enforcement resources and erode trust between local police and the immigrant communities they serve.
But Murrill argues that Louisiana residents reject such “sanctuary” policies because undocumented immigrants have posed a danger to public safety.
“Governor (Jeff) Landry and I are committed to defending the sovereign rights of Louisiana and her people, and we look forward to working with President Trump to end the wave of violent crime and drugs that has swept across this nation from the southern border for the last eight years,” the attorney general said in a prepared statement.
Her lawsuit also stresses that the passage of SB 208 last year to ensure more robust cooperation with ICE should have led the parties in the consent decree to dissolve the agreement.
“Louisiana’s state and local law enforcement agencies have long cooperated with federal immigration enforcement with immigration detainers,” the lawsuit states. “Indeed, such cooperation and communication is required by federal law.”