Hodgson Backs DHS Recommendation To Arrest Sanctuary City Leaders

Less than a year after advocating to a Congressional subcommittee for harsher penalties on elected officials that refuse to enforce federal immigration laws, Bristol County Sheriff Tom Hodgson may be finally getting his wish.

Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Kirstjen Nielsen confirmed on Tuesday that the agency has requested the Department of Justice (DOJ) to consider policies that would allow for elected leaders who refuse to enforce federal illegal immigration laws to face criminal charges.

Bristol County Sheriff Tom Hodgson testified before a Congressional subcommittee last March on the dangers of illegal immigration in the United States. In his 2017 testimony, Hodgson argued that it's a national security risk to allow criminal illegal immigrants to roam free, referring to a written report he authored to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security.

The Sheriff also advocated for the arrest of elected officials against enforcing immigration laws during the testimony and slammed Brockton State Representative Michelle Dubois for alerting residents via Facebook that ICE agents would be conducting raids in the city.

Sheriff Hodgson joined the "Chris McCarthy Show" on Wednesday to discuss the Department's request to the DOJ to consider the measure. He says that “people are being killed every day in this country” and that “sex trafficking and human trafficking is out of control” at the hands of illegal immigrants.

“Everybody knows that sex trafficking and human trafficking is out of control because of this. There are people being killed every day in this country at the hands of illegals,” Hodgson said. “At the expense of the many Angel Moms and Angel Dads, who went this past Christmas without their son or without their daughter because they were killed by these illegals that are coming here.”

Later in the program, Hodgson went on to explain that sanctuary cities are in violation of Title 8, Section 13-24 of the U.S. Code, something he explained in his Congressional testimony as well. He also described what he told Congressman Steve King (R-Iowa) when asked what should be done with those governing sanctuary cities. Hodgson said, “It's very simple. Issue arrest warrants.”

“President Trump has asked these elected officials in a very professional way to follow federal law, and they keep thumbing their nose at him, the American people, and the legal residents who have come here,” explained Hodgson. “No elected official has a right to exempt themselves from following federal law. Title 8, Section 13-24 clearly states that anyone who knows of someone to be in this country illegally and attempts to harbor and conceal them is guilty of a felony under federal law.”

Hodgson also says the DOJ considering different avenues of enforcing Title 8, Section 13-24 is the result of the American people being “fed up” with the prospect of sanctuary cities.

“Don't think that you're going to come here and create this haven for people to hide so the bad guys can go and hurt the ICE agents that are trying to enforce the federal law, to hurt local law enforcement, to prevent us from working with our partners.,” stated Hodgson. “What elected official do you know in their right mind would suggest that law enforcement should have less cooperation to keep you less safe?”