Fact Check: What happens to undocumented immigrants arrested or convicted of crimes in California

As the wave of immigration sweeps across Southern California shows no signs of letting up are undocumented immigrants who have been arrested jailed and charged with unrelated state crimes suddenly at increased danger of ending up in federal custody RELATED Appeals court says President Trump can mobilize California National Guard Undocumented immigrants already caught up in the local legal system for crimes that have nothing to do with their immigration status have long been an enticing target for federal immigration representatives who would rather take someone into custody in a secure jail than grab them during potentially chaotic sweeps out in the district Related Articles East Bay city struggles to allocate million in immigrant relief funds Philp California Democrats defend immigrant healthcare care but need a broader agenda Appeals court says President Trump can mobilize California National Guard ICE agents denied entry to Dodger Stadium by group Highly sophisticated perimeter tunnel uncovered under California-Mexico port of entry Direct cooperation with U S Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE is severely limited under state law however and local law enforcement in Southern California has continued resisting being dragged into policing immigration law they say should be left up to their federal counterparts But as the Trump administration aggressively seeks to carry out what they have promised will be the largest deportation activity in American history the pressure on local law enforcement has increased and federal authorities are looking for procedures to get around the sanctuary state restrictions New pressure Federal efforts to target undocumented immigrants suspected of state crimes have largely played out at local jails where those awaiting trial are housed There has been a essential increase in the number of immigration detainers issued by federal authorities to local jails since January announced Annie Lai a law professor and director of the UC Irvine Law Immigrant Rights Clinic The detainers are essentially requests by ICE to a local agency to notify them when an undocumented immigrant is going to be issued from local lockup and to hold them for up to hours so ICE can pick them up Those detainers are disregarded and rendered meaningless by the state sanctuary law federal administrators say In a fresh Fox News interview United States Attorney Bill Essayli alleged that by preventing ICE from taking undocumented immigrants into custody in the jails local administrators were forcing them to turn to the group raids We are unable to work with the jails we are unable to work with local sheriffs and police officers to screen people for their immigration status when they commit crimes and to focus on those people and have them removed Essayli declared Late last month the U S Attorney s Office publicized Operation Guardian Angel which they described as a scheme that sought to neutralize the provisions of California s sanctuary by using federal arrest warrants to try to take undocumented immigrants who are in local lockup into federal custody By using arrest warrants federal functionaries are seeking those undocumented immigrants for an alleged criminal offense not an immigration violation subject to the sanctuary restrictions on cooperation with ICE State functionaries have argued that the fact federal law enforcement has the option to seek arrest warrants for undocumented immigrants proves that Essayli s claim that they get no cooperation from local law is false The U S Attorney is either still learning about his new job or worse he s lying Gov Gavin Newsom s press office wrote in a social media posting this week Lai the UCI law professor explained the increased pressure from federal immigration functionaries creates a greater peril that someone who should be protected by the state sanctuary law ends up being transferred to federal custody The consequences are quite severe Lai explained of those who end up in ICE custody That person goes to a federal detention center Right now people are being transferred around the country away from their family and attorneys It is very high stakes when there is a mistake Immigration status and local crimes At the time of arrest law enforcement agencies across Southern California have made clear that they do not proactively check on an individual s immigration status Immigration enforcement isn t the job of local police or sheriff s departments law enforcement leaders say And they worry that making undocumented immigrants fearful of any contact with local law enforcement would dissuade casualties from coming forward or onlookers to crimes from cooperating or testifying in court The immigration status of a defendant rarely comes up in a state criminal courtroom It generally doesn t impact bail decisions or play into the evidence presented at trial A jury will likely never learn a defendant s immigration status and a judge will likely never bring it up at a sentencing There are times however when the feasible impact of a conviction is acknowledged in state court When any defendant is contemplating a plea agreement they are explicitly warned by their attorney in writing in court paperwork and by the judge taking the plea that if they are not a citizen a conviction could lead to deportation And while it is laborious to gauge on a case-by-case basis Lai noted that chosen studies have shown that undocumented immigrants overall are likely to receive longer sentences and less likely to be accepted into diversion programs that allow defendants to avoid jail or prison time On a systematic level there seems to be a disparity Lai revealed The probable for ICE agents to show up at courtrooms looking for undocumented immigrant defendants has also drawn concern in the past State courts generally have a protocol to neither help nor hinder such sessions But unlike in local immigration courts where ICE in newest weeks has aggressively appeared to take immigrants into custody Lai declared she has heard of only isolated reports of ICE showing up of late at criminal courthouses Jail strategy When it comes to the jails several sheriff s departments have a blanket protocol not to cooperate at all with federal immigration executives Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna for example previously noted that his department does not honor ICE requests or detainers or transfer individuals into their custody Other agencies offer limited cooperation they say is allowed under state law Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes for example previously declared his department has the discretion under the law to honor immigration detainers and transfer into ICE custody serious offenders with a history of homicide attempted murder child molestation human trafficking or other violent crimes Orange County Assistant Sheriff Nate Wilson who previously oversaw the Intake Release Center at the department s central jail complex noted that even if it is determined that someone is eligible to be turned over it wouldn t happen until their local charges have been resolved Federal immigration executives must also pick someone up at the time they are set to be circulated from local custody not expect them to be held longer by the local jails Wilson announced The only time we turn them over to the federal regime is if they are physically going to be leaving our custody Wilson noted If ICE fails to show up they will not be held Leaders with the U S Attorney s office did not respond to requests for comment regarding how they determine which individuals to target with the Operation Guardian Angel related arrest warrants But Wilson verified that in the weeks since the U S Attorney s Office revealed Operation Guardian Angel the Orange County Sheriff s Department has received arrest warrants for people who have been previously deported What happens after conviction Most of convicted of local crimes serve their sentence in state prison According to guidelines from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation CDCR which oversees the state prisons they are required to identify convicts who may be subject to deportation within days of them entering the prison system When a prison inmate is set to be issued according to CDCR guidelines their file is reviewed for any warrants or immigration detainers If prison authorities know someone is an undocumented immigrant but don t see a detainer in the system they will contact ICE according to the guidelines If there is an immigration detainer CDCR contacts ICE within to days of their release to see if ICE plans to take them into custody upon their release from prison For those who somehow end up in ICE custody after being charged or convicted with state crimes the impact can be stark They are likely to miss criminal court hearings with judges potentially unaware why or be prevented from completing their parole and the full terms of their sentence It really undermines if you believe the criminal justice system is supposed to put people on a path to rehabilitation Lai reported