Below is a statement released by Mayor Liccardo on Tuesday:
"This is a devastating tragedy-- and my thoughts and prayers go to Ms. Larson's family during this awful time. I'm grateful to Chief Eddie Garcia and our San Jose Police Department officers for their work in apprehending and arresting this individual and keeping our community safe.
It is long overdue for the County to reconsider its current policy of ignoring ICE hold requests for predatory felons, which undermines the safety of the very immigrant communities we collectively seek to protect. On July 10, 2015, I sent a letter urging County leaders to review their policies to ensure federal immigration authorities prosecute violent, predatory individuals who pose a serious threat to our residents.
My views were consistent with those expressed by Police Chief Eddie Garcia, and with the proposed policy of District Attorney Jeff Rosen, who sought to have the County accept ICE detainers for individuals, like the defendant in this case, arrested for prior first-degree home burglaries and other 'strike' offenses.
The County's policy has nothing to do with the City's decades-long policy of declining to have police engage in federal immigration enforcement, which was implemented to protect public safety. In contrast, the current County policy of ignoring detainer requests for individuals arrested for strike offenses and convicted of multiple felonies undermines public safety, and violates common sense. I hope we can restart this conversation to make progress where we all agree: we can both keep our City safe from violent criminals and protect our law-abiding immigrant community."
