Late Tuesday evening, the Senate voted to table an amendment offered to the Commerce-Justice-Science appropriations bill that would have undercut community policing and endangered public safety. The 52-42 procedural vote effectively defeated this amendment, offered by Senator Vitter (R-LA), which attempted to deny Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) funding to cities and States that pledge to not ask about the immigration status of crime victims and witnesses.

The Vitter amendment attempted to force state and local governments to reverse their local community policing policies, alienating community residents so that they might be afraid to report crimes. The amendment was tabled once leaders from key cities such as Baltimore, Philadelphia and San Francisco began to speak out and Senators understood the grave consequences that would have resulted from adoption of the Vitter amendment.

Congress should continue to listen to cities and States when it comes to crafting state and local policy, not coerce them into adopting new immigration enforcement duties at the expense of fighting crime. Scores of cities and states have community policing policies that encourage all residents to work with the police and report crimes. Without these policies in place, immigrant victims and witnesses to crime will be afraid to come forward and report crimes, for fear that their immigration status could come under scrutiny and they could be deported. These policies help police get the information they need to fight crime and protect our communities.

THANK YOU to everyone who put a call in to your senator. We expect positive and negative pieces of immigration legislation will continue to be introduced in Congress through the end of the session. To stay up to date on how your voice can make a difference in these and other immigration policy issues, sign up for the NIJC Action Alerts list. We only send out a few e-mails a month at the moments when your voice matters most.