SF DA Brooke Jenkins is using a Federal Program to do an End Run around the City and State Sanctuary Laws

DA Brooke Jenkins, who previously attempted to bypass San Francisco’s Sanctuary Ordinance [1] but backed down after the Board pushed back[2], has elected to participate in the All Hands on Deck operation and is using it to allow ICE to detain people accused of low-level drug offenses[25], in violation of both the city and state’s Sanctuary laws.

All Hands on Deck, a law enforcement operation which started in November 2023, was intended to crack down on drug sales, distribution, and use in the Tenderloin. As part of this operation, the DA’s office passes Federal prosecutors a certain number of state drug cases to be prosecuted under Federal law[3]. Unfortunately, a direct result of this policy is that immigrants are being handed over to ICE.

Here is how it works: A person who has been arrested by SFPD for a drug crime shows up for their initial court hearing. While waiting in the hallway for their hearing to begin, either Federal Marshalls or plainclothes DEA agents appear, and they arrest the person for the exact same charges, but this time under Federal law. [5] The person is taken to federal prison — sometimes in a different county — and the DA drops the state charges. If this person is an immigrant, they are offered a deal: they can either face Federal prosecution for their drug offenses, which are typically much stricter and can carry heavy jail time, or they can take a “Fast Track” deal in which they plead guilty, are sentenced to time served plus one day, and are handed over to ICE the next day.[4][5]

In the past, ICE would then deport them back to their home country. Given recent changes in Federal policies, it’s not clear what has happened to the people who have been “Fast Tracked” in the last few months.

The DA claims that “Pleas and sentences in federal and state court do not include deportation or non-deportation as a term of any sentence” [6], but plea deals as described above have been confirmed by documents obtained by KQED [7], as well as by complaints from several Federal judges.[8] Indeed, former federal attorney Ismael Ramsey said that “In the United States if you have a conviction for felony drug dealing, there’s a strong chance you’ll get deported if you’re not a citizen” [9], making it clear that this policy is creating a direct link between the DA’s office and ICE, with the Federal Marshalls simply acting as the middlemen. This entire process is coordinated by the Special Assistant U.S. Attorney in the DA’s office, who refers San Francisco court cases to the federal court.[10]

Notably absent from the DA in these proceedings is any compassion for the accused, who frequently are victims of human trafficking [11][12][13], and therefore should be given U- or T- visas [14]. California law allows for human trafficking as an affirmative defense[15], which is why several cases like these have either resulted in hung juries, not-guilty verdicts, or dismissal of charges when taken to trial.[16][17] In fact, some of these people, rather than being high-level drug lords, have been young mothers with no prior offenses [18], as well as a nine-month-pregnant woman who, while in custody, was told that her baby would be taken away from her [19]. Under California law, a U- or T-visa requires the DA’s signature [20], but she has refused to sign, even when the person was acquitted of all charges because they were a victim of human trafficking [21].

Brooke Jenkins has said that her “office is doing nothing in coordination with any federal immigration enforcement whatsoever”[22] and that she “supports and respects our Sanctuary City policy”,[23] however it is difficult to see how handing over human trafficking victims to ICE is in either the spirit or the letter of the City’s Sanctuary policy, given that it states:

No department, agency, commission, officer, or employee of the City and County of San Francisco shall use any City funds or resources to assist in the enforcement of Federal immigration law or to gather or disseminate information regarding release status of individuals or any other such personal information as defined in Chapter 12I in the City and County of San Francisco.[24]