Press Releases

Congressman Glenn Grothman today voted to protect Americans by supporting the No Sanctuary for Criminals Act (H.R. 3003) and Kate’s Law (H.R. 3004).

The No Sanctuary for Criminals Act ensures that the 300 or so “sanctuary cities” that defy federal immigration law by refusing to turn over criminal illegal immigrants to authorities do not receive certain federal grants. Instead, these Justice Department and Department of Homeland Security grants would be reallocated to states and localities that comply with federal law.

The bill also includes Sarah and Grant’s Law, which ensures that illegal immigrants convicted of dangerous crimes are detained during their removal proceedings. The law is named after Sarah Root, who was killed by an illegal immigrant who was driving drunk and later escaped after being released from custody, and Grant Ronnebeck, who was murdered during an armed robbery by a convicted felon who was free on bond while facing deportation.

Additionally, Kate’s Law increases mandatory penalties for immigrants who re-enter the U.S. after being deported. The law is named for 32-year-old Kate Steinle, who was randomly gunned down in the sanctuary city of San Francisco by a criminal illegal immigrant with seven prior felony convictions and five deportations.

“Our job is to keep Americans safe and our country secure, and so-called sanctuary cities impede our ability to do just that,” said Grothman. “Not enforcing our current immigration laws is a public safety issue. In fact, 121 people who were released from immigration custody were later charged with murder between 2010 and 2014.

“This bill is a step in the right direction to make sure no more Americans die because politicians refuse to do their job of enforcing our immigration laws.”

The No Sanctuary for Criminals Act passed the House by a vote of 228-195.

Kate’s Law passed the House by a vote of 257-167.

Unfortunately, there were dissenting votes on the passage of these bills because the other side of the aisle honestly believes that removing violent criminal aliens is a public safety concern.

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U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman is serving his second term representing Wisconsin’s 6th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives.