It is definitely a rare occurrence when the chief of police won’t enforce the law, but that’s what happened last week when Salt Lake Police Chief Chris Burbank publicly refused to uphold Senate Bill 81. The state’s immigration reform legislation S.B. 81 calls for cross-deputizing officers as federal immigration agents to better police people who are here illegally.
Burbank said the law, effective July 1, would put Salt Lake City police officers in the position of violating human rights by engaging in racial profiling in order to enforce S.B. 81. This is a stance he has taken since the inception of the legislation more than a year ago.
Kudos to Chief Burbank. Clearly, the Salt Lake Police Department should not be burdened with responsibilities belonging to a different agency that is better trained and equipped for the job. It would be a violation of human rights should citizens with Latino heritage be targeted as illegal immigrants during routine traffic stops.
The sad part of this story is the way Rep. Mike Noel, R-Kanab, House sponsor for S.B. 81, is behaving. He has threatened to withhold $4 million in jail reimbursement funds from the state because of Burbank’s stance. Rather than making vengeful threats, Noel would do better to seek a compromise and solution to the issue. Unfortunately, he instead is taking an arrogant stance of power and blowing a lot of smoke, as it is now out of his hands.
Although this is a very complicated issue, it is disturbing that a state legislator is wielding his authority and making threats without giving more attention to a viable complaint by the police. Although it’s hard to say whether Noel’s threat to withhold $4 million is legal or not because of existing precedence, it is unethical at the very least.
“This (withholding funds) would have to be pursuant to a valid law, not just the statements of a legislator. Of course, any legislator can make threats that if the funds are not spent according to his or her wishes, he/she will introduce a bill that would either prevent the agency from spending additional funds or further direct the agency on how to spend such funds,” said Alexander Skibine, a law professor at the U. “Still, this bill would have to become law, which means it would have to be passed by the House and the Senate and signed by the governor.”
Noel would be best served to start listening and try to find a different solution. Immigration reform and monitoring is definitely a tricky issue, so it is absolutely critical to have all parties involved. It appears that Noel is too busy pushing for his own agenda to be part of a constructive dialogue.
Liz Carlston