<p>California’s sanctuary state laws might prevent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from gaining custody of an illegal alien who has been named as a “person of interest” in connection with one of the fires that ignited last week in the Los Angeles area.</p>
<p>ICE named 33-year-old Mexican national Juan Manuel Sierra as a person of interest in connection with the Kenneth Fire, which burned nearly 1,000 acres near Calabasas but is now <a href="https://www.fire.ca.gov/incidents/2025/1/9/kenneth-fire">fully contained</a>. The federal immigration enforcement agency has placed a detainer on Sierra, but could be prevented from gaining custody of him due to sanctuary policies designed to protect illegal aliens from deportation.</p>
<p>Sierra was <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-14/kenneth-fire-person-of-interest-is-a-convicted-felon-and-entered-country-illegally-ice-says">arrested</a> by the Los Angeles Police Department on January 10 for a felony probation violation while allegedly “attempting to start a fire” and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/man-detained-with-blowtorch-near-wildfire-idd-as-illegal-immigrant-not-charged-with-arson-report">possessing a blowtorch</a> and is currently being held in a Los Angeles County jail. The sheriff&#8217;s department has <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-14/kenneth-fire-person-of-interest-is-a-convicted-felon-and-entered-country-illegally-ice-says">stated</a> that Sierra will be transferred to ICE if it provides an arrest warrant, which is distinct from the detainer that ICE has currently filed.</p>
<p>ICE <a href="https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/statement-ice-person-interest-being-held-connection-california-fires">confirmed</a> that Sierra “entered the U.S. unlawfully at an unknown date” and has had “multiple encounters with law enforcement from November 2016 to present for a variety of charges and was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon Oct. 10, 2023.”</p>
<p>California officially <a href="https://calmatters.org/california-divide/2024/11/immigrant-deportation-california-trump/#:~:text=In%20the%20first%20Trump%20administration,people%20to%20federal%20immigration%20authorities.">designated itself</a> as a sanctuary state during President Donald Trump’s first term, passing a law that barred local law enforcement from transferring most illegal aliens into the custody of federal immigration enforcement agents.</p>
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<p>Senate Bill 54, <a href="https://caimmigrant.org/timeline/the-california-values-act-sb-54-de-leon/">signed into law</a> in 2017, prevents law enforcement from complying with ICE detainer requests. These requests ask that local or state law enforcement agents hold an illegal alien for up to 48 hours after their initial release date. One anonymous law enforcement source <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/01/13/us-news/suspect-arrested-with-flamethrower-near-kenneth-fire-is-an-illegal-immigrant-report/">told</a> the New York Post that ICE does not expect its detainer request to be honored due to the sanctuary policy.</p>
<p>California state Sen. Melissa Melendez, a Republican, took to X after the illegal alien&#8217;s arrest and cited his previous convictions, saying &#8220;he&#8217;s been protected from the law, and from deportation by Gavin Newsom and the democrat party.&#8221;</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Suspected arsonist in the Los Angeles fires, Juan Manuel Sierra, is an illegal alien with a long rap sheet.</p>
<p>But he’s been protected from the law, and from deportation by Gavin Newsom and the democrat party. <a href="https://t.co/r3HLVuxfNq">pic.twitter.com/r3HLVuxfNq</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Senator Melissa Melendez (@senatormelendez) <a href="https://twitter.com/senatormelendez/status/1879333217335201966?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
<p>California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom&#8217;s press office <a href="https://x.com/GovPressOffice/status/1879370713104093264">responded</a>, saying, &#8220;Local law enforcement is allowed to cooperate with ICE to take people who pose a threat to public safety into custody when released from jail or prison” and that “SB 54 does not impede criminal investigations or sharing information about an individual&#8217;s criminal history.”</p>
<p>The arrest of Sierra comes as President-elect Trump and his border czar Tom Homan have indicated that they will take action against jurisdictions that attempt to hinder federal immigration enforcement activities through sanctuary policies, including by <a href="https://www.boston25news.com/news/local/boston-mayor-wu-responds-threats-sanctuary-cities-losing-federal-funding/XJQQKOMFCNDURFNMMYOLYCOPFA/">slashing</a> federal funding. Trump, who will be inaugurated into office as the 47th president next week, has pledged to carry out the largest mass deportation effort in American history.</p>

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CA Sanctuary Laws Could Prevent ICE From Taking Custody Of Illegal Alien Arrested With Blowtorch