Oregon AG Says Marion County Cannot Release Immigrant Records to ICE and Moves to Dismiss Lawsuit
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield filed a motion on Monday asking the court to dismiss the lawsuit filed by Marion County, in which the county seeks clarity on handing over personal data to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as this is already clear in explicit sanctuary laws, which have been followed for decades.
State Affirms Clear Sanctuary Laws In Marion County Lawsuit On Handing Over Data To ICE
In a motion filed in a federal court, the Oregon AG asked the court to dismiss Marion County’s lawsuit on Oregon’s sanctuary laws.
The sanctuary law is already clear that Marion County, like other public bodies and law enforcement agencies in Oregon, cannot release immigration information to federal officials in response to administrative subpoenas without a judicial order.
Despite this, Marion County filed a lawsuit seeking “clarity,” instead of following well-established processes under state and federal law when it faced those exact circumstances a few months ago.
AG Rayfield said:
The law is clear as to what Marion County should do. There is simply nothing for the court to resolve here.
AG Rayfield confirmed that the Ninth Circuit Court has already ruled that there is no conflict between Oregon’s sanctuary law and federal law.
It has been the law for nearly four decades that public bodies can’t use state resources to help enforce federal immigration law, and it has coexisted peacefully under seven presidential administrations.
Oregon’s sanctuary law framework, first enacted in 1987, was reaffirmed by voters in 2021. The laws require state and local officials to decline to produce certain immigration information in response to an administrative subpoena from ICE unless the agency initiates an enforcement proceeding and obtains a judicial order enforcing the subpoena.
Rayfield confirmed that the process, which safeguards by ensuring a neutral judge has reviewed the ICE subpoena to determine if it meets legal requirements before state and local officials must comply, is not confusing.
Marion County cannot lawfully provide immigration information to ICE without a court order under existing sanctuary laws.
Rayfield also argued that the county will suffer no legal consequences from insisting that a court order issue before it complies with the subpoenas and that it lacks standing to litigate the hypothetical “conflicts.” Federal laws do not displace Oregon’s sanctuary laws, and no conflict exists.