In a case filed against Oklahoma on Tuesday, the Biden administration questioned a new law that lets local police arrest people who are in the state illegally.
As of April, Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt signed local House Bill 4156 into law. This makes it illegal to enter Oklahoma while not having permission to be in the US.
The Justice Department said the law is illegal because it is similar to laws that were sued in Texas and Iowa.
Chief Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian Boynton said in a statement announcing the case, “Oklahoma cannot ignore the U.S. Constitution and clear Supreme Court precedent.”
“We are taking this action to make sure that Oklahoma follows the Constitution and the rules that Congress made for controlling immigration,” he said.
A complaint from the DOJ said that Oklahoma’s new law “intrudes on the federal government’s exclusive authority to regulate noncitizens’ entry and reentry into, and presence in, the United States,” which means that federal law “preempts” Oklahoma’s new law.
The lawsuit from the federal government says that HB 4156 gets in the way of that plan, makes it harder for the US to handle immigration issues, and hurts ties with other countries.
The case was made in the US District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma. Among the defendants were Stitt, the state’s attorney general, Gentner Drummond, and the commissioner of the state’s Department of public safety, Tim Tipton.
“Illegal occupation” is now illegal under a new law that starts July 1.
A misdemeanor charge, up to one year in jail, and a $500 fine would be given for a first crime. People who are caught illegally entering the US would have to leave the state within 72 hours.
If you did it again, you would be charged with a felony and could face up to two years in jail and a $1,000 fine.
In May, the Biden administration sued Iowa over a rule that lets state police arrest immigrants who were turned away or denied entry into the US before.
It was also in January that the Biden Justice Department sued Texas over a law that lets states arrest, jail, prosecute, and deport people who enter the country between ports of entry.
“I am disappointed that this bill has to be passed,” Stitt said when he signed HB 4156 into law in April.
“More than 10 million people have crossed the southern border since President Biden took office in 2021.” A huge number of people from all over the world, including thousands of Chinese citizens and members of terrorist groups, have crossed the U.S.-Mexico border illegally. Oklahomans worry about the people who might be waiting for a chance to hurt our country.
“My only goal is to protect all four million Oklahomans, no matter their race, ethnicity, or heritage,” he said, adding that the law doesn’t let local police profile people based on their race or ask people about their immigration status if they don’t have a good reason to think they are committing a crime.
It was promised last week by the state’s attorney general that they would fight any lawsuits the Biden administration might file over the new law.
In a letter sent to the DOJ on May 17, Drummond said, “One thing that has been clear for the last 3.5 years is that the Biden Administration is only ‘committed’ to breaking the immigration laws of this country.” “Your unreasonable demands don’t take into account the fact that Oklahoma has both the legal right and the duty to protect its own borders and people.”
Then he said, “You are wrong about our law. If the Biden Administration sues over it, I will vigorously defend Oklahoma and its people.”
