Por HOY en Delaware
Governor Meyer signed a series of bills in the presence of local leaders and legislators, to protect Delawareans and vulnerable immigrant communities, on September 3.
Meyer officially signed three key pieces of immigration-related legislation into law during a formal bill-signing ceremony at Avenue United Methodist Church in Milford, DE.
The newly signed legislation will take effect immediately.
What bills were signed?
The legislation signed into law limits local law enforcement participation in ICE arrests at courthouses (HS 1 for HB 150 with HA 2) and sensitive places such as schools, medical facilities, and places of worship (HS 2 for HB 94 with HA 1). It also limits when local law enforcement can honor detainer requests from ICE (HS 1 for HB 368 with HA 1).
HB 150 – Prevents Civil Arrests at State Courthouses and Industrial Accident Board: This bill prohibits individuals from being subject to civil arrest while going to, remaining at, or returning from a state courthouse or the Office of the Delaware Industrial Accident Board.
HB 368 – Prevents State Law Enforcement from Detaining People Solely on Civil Immigration Warrants: This bill limits the ability of Delaware law enforcement agencies to extend detention of someone based entirely upon outstanding immigration detainers or civil immigration warrants.
HB 94 – Prohibits State and Local Law Enforcement from Cooperating with ICE at Schools, Hospitals, and Places of Worship: This bill prohibits a law-enforcement officer from directly participating with a federal agency in civil immigration enforcement activities at child serving entities, institutions of higher education, places of worship, and healthcare facilities unless an exigent circumstance exists.
What did leaders say?
“Due to increasing ICE activity in Delaware, vulnerable and at-risk communities are scared to go to their doctors, go to school, and even leave their homes,” said Helen Salita, ACLU-DE campaign manager. “We’re grateful this community and its elected officials have come together and taken action to ensure that everyone is safer in these sensitive community spaces and can access the vital services they need.”
People in attendance
Immigrants’ rights advocates championed these bills to limit cooperation between Delaware law enforcement officers and federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
At the ceremony Governor Meyer was joined by Rony Baltazar, Director of the Delaware Office of New Americans; Representative Mara Gorman; Senator Kyra Hoffner; Carlos de los Ramos, President of the Delaware Hispanic Commission; Pastors Steve LaMotte and Neyda AlbarrƔn, and Jessenia Carranza, Multilingual Teacher and Community Advocate, among others.
