Commentary by Massachusetts Republican Party Chairman Jim Lyons on Massachusetts “sanctuary state” legislation, ahead of Jan. 24 hearing

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Evan Lips, communications director
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A bill seeking to transform Massachusetts into a “sanctuary state” proves beyond a doubt the Radical Left’s disdain for American sovereignty, and especially the rule of law.  

The misnamed “Safe Communities Act” is about neither safety nor community. 

A more truthful name for this bill is “The Unsafe Act to Disrupt Communities.”

Why is that? 

Here’s why: The Unsafe Communities Act would protect those who have already broken the law by crossing our borders illegally. They already have a sense that they can get away with defying the same laws American citizens must obey. 

If you’re a citizen traveling abroad, just try to get back into this country without your passport or papers. 

No matter what you say, you will not be permitted to simply waltz across the border. 

Even as an American citizen, you’ll be detained until absolute proof of your identity is established.

So why do leftist Democrats want to grant special rights for those who refuse to follow rules that every American must follow?

Rather than increasing respect for our laws, the Unsafe Communities Act will diminish any sense that newcomers must obey our legal system.

The Unsafe Communities Act certainly would not make Massachusetts a safer community for one specific disabled elderly woman. According to reports, she somehow survived a violent episode made possible only due to the same policies currently being pushed at the state level by leftist Democrats.
The wheelchair-bound victim in this case was viciously attacked and robbed in October 2017 as part of a $2,000 robbery captured on video in Boston — which claimed “sanctuary city” status in 2014 — at the Charles River Plaza Bank of America kiosk. 

Who attacked this innocent person?

An illegal immigrant who would be granted additional protections through the Unsafe Act. 

In this case, the state Supreme Judicial Court allowed Sreynuon Lunn, an illegal immigrant from Cambodia who had been arraigned a year prior on a previous robbery charge, to remain free in Massachusetts. 

The SJC handed down that ruling in July 2017. Their reasoning? 

“Massachusetts law provides no authority for Massachusetts court officers to arrest and hold an individual solely on the basis of a Federal civil immigration detainer, beyond the time that the individual would otherwise be entitled to be released from State custody.”

The state’s previous charges against Lunn stem from his alleged October 2017 robbery of another homeless man on Boston’s Canal Street. Following the SJC ruling, federal Immigration and Customs officials were subsequently barred from working with local law enforcement, and Lunn was allowed to walk. 

Fast-forward just three months and Lunn, who should have been sent back home to his native Cambodia, is emboldened and back at it again. 

This time, his target was an elderly woman. 

I don’t know about the liberal Democrats, but I do know that Republicans want to make our communities safer for people like her.  We want safe communities for those who respect and follow our laws.

The Unsafe Communities Act protects the wrong people. It will grant additional rights to lawbreakers like Lunn, who first defy laws regulating entry into the United States — and then prey upon innocent victims.
Let’s make it clear to the far-left that we’re above their virtue signaling and angling for cheap political points.

Let’s make it clear that nobody is above the law.

WHAT: Hearing on S. 1401
WHERE: Gardner Auditorium, Massachusetts State House
WHEN: Friday, Jan. 24, 11 a.m.