Testimony to the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee

of HB1362, the Maryland Law Enforcement and Governmental Trust Act

in Support
By the Montgomery County Civil Rights Coalition,
and the Bill of Rights Defense Committee/Defending Dissent Foundation
February 28, 2017

The Bill of Rights Defense Committee/Defending Dissent Foundation is a national trans-partisan

advocacy organization whose mission is to defend the rights and liberties guaranteed by the U.S.
Constitution. The Montgomery County Civil Rights Coalition is a civil rights and civil liberties coalition
with over 1200 supporters in Maryland, primarily in Montgomery County.

As civil rights and civil liberties groups, we are in general agreement with the policies set out by HB1362.
While we would support such a bill during any legislative session, we believe it is more incumbent than
ever for Maryland to adopt such policies. The current federal government has indicated that it will be
pursuing an agenda ratcheting up deportations and making America in general more hostile to
immigrants. Already, we have seen high profile Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) raids in
major cities.

These policies are directly contrary to the democratic aspirations of Marylanders. Marylanders have
consistently demonstrated that they wish for their state to be a welcoming place for immigrants. This is
evidenced by the fact that voters supported a ballot initiative granting certain undocumented immigrants
in-state tuition and state financial aid. Maryland also allows undocumented immigrants to acquire state
drivers licenses.

Since local law enforcement agencies and officers are responsible to the local communities they serve,
they should not be used to subvert the democratic will of those communities or undermine their values.
HB1362 would prevent just that.

Local law enforcement are in no way obligated to enforce federal civil immigration laws. As such, it
makes no sense for local law enforcement to enforce civil immigration laws, helping to detain and remove
individuals that Marylanders have indicated are welcome in their state.

In addition to upholding the values of Maryland, HB1362 would make Maryland more respective of civil
liberties and constitutional rights generally. For example, it would prohibit Maryland from making an
arrest on the basis of a civil immigration warrant. Civil immigration warrants do not contain the signature
of a neutral magistrate and thus violate the Fourth Amendment, which requires such a warrant for the
seizure of a person. Maryland law enforcement should not be violating the Fourth Amendment.
Furthermore, by prohibiting law enforcement from conducting a stop, arrest, search, or detention to
investigate a suspected civil immigration violation or inquire about citizenship, the bill would defend
Marylanders from discriminatory profiling. Allowing law enforcement to stop an individual to ask about
their immigration status or country of origin opens the door to racial and national origin profiling,
meaning Marylanders, including some who are not even immigrants, would face unnecessary harassment.

The Bill of Rights Defense Committee/Defending Dissent Foundation and the Montgomery County Civil
Rights Coalition strongly support the policies outlined in HB1362. Given the current federal climate,
which takes an unwelcoming position toward immigrants diametrically opposed to the democratic
aspirations of Marylanders, we believe its passage is an urgent priority. Doing so will not only prevent
local law enforcement from acting contrary to the wishes of Marylanders, but it will strengthen civil
liberties generally.

We respectfully urge you to support HB1362.

Submitted by Chip Gibbons, Legislative and Policy Council, Bill of Rights Defense
Committee/Defending Dissent Foundation. For further information contact: chip@BORDC.org