A Maryland county sheriff on Monday accused a Democratic county executive for supporting sanctuary laws protecting undocumented immigrants after a series of sexual assaults in the area.
Seven undocumented immigrants have been arrested on suspicion of committing sexual assault in Montgomery County, Maryland in the last five weeks. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement recently accused the county of violating its own jail policy by releasing an undocumented immigrant who had been accused of rape even though the agency had sent an immigration detainer.
“It’s really outrageous,” Montgomery County Sheriff Chuck Jenkins said on “Fox and Friends” Monday. “What they’ve done now is galvanized the fact that you can commit — in Montgomery County — commit crimes as an illegal alien and you won’t feel the consequences. You’ll be prosecuted for the state crime, but then once you’re adjudicated, you would be released back onto the street to potentially commit more crimes against the citizens.”
Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich signed an executive order last month banning the county from asking residents about immigration status and ICE agents from entering the secure sections of county jails, but allowing the jailer to contact ICE when an undocumented immigrant posts bond if they’ve been accused of a “serious crime,” including rape, armed robbery, kidnapping or murder, and if ICE has already filed a detainer against the suspect.
Jenkins went on to criticize Elrich, saying what he has “done effectively is jeopardize public safety throughout the entire central part of Maryland.”