Mississippi law allows creation of statewide registry of undocumented immigrants
A Mississippi law set to take effect Wednesday will allow the state Department of Public Safety to compile a list of people it believes are living in the state illegally, the measure’s text shows.
The law says the department “may use all reasonable lawful investigative means available” to determine the number and identities of people residing in Mississippi without legal status, including names, addresses, country of origin and whether they are adults or children. It also allows listing criminal histories and the date, location and status of deportation proceedings and instructs the agency to share information on suspected law violations with state and local authorities, the bill states.
Other provisions of SB 2114 require the Department of Public Safety and county detention agencies to seek cooperation agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement under Section 287(g), though the law does not explicitly require or bar sharing the new database with federal immigration authorities, the bill says.
State Sen. Angela Hill, a Republican who sponsored the bill, said states have a right and obligation to help the federal government stop illegal immigration and called the measure “commonsense.” She said identifying the number and identity of people in the country illegally is a “concrete way to better understand the problem,” Hill said.
Immigrant advocates warned the law could lead to profiling and undermine trust between communities and police. Efrén Olivares of the National Immigration Law Center said the effort would be “practically unworkable” and compared it to lists used in other countries. Victoria Francis of the American Immigration Council said the measure could divert law enforcement resources, and Lydia Grizzell of the ACLU of Mississippi said it could discourage residents from contacting police, the Associated Press reported.
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