Governor Puts New Conditions On State Criminal Justice Grants

By ED STERLING

Texas Press Association

AUSTIN — Gov. Greg Abbott says Texas sheriffs won’t receive grant funds from his Criminal Justice Division unless they comply with U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement notification and detention requests. In a Nov. 4 letter, Abbott wrote to sheriffs: “Beginning now, all Criminal Justice Division grant awards will require that sheriffs departments fully honor ICE’s detention requests for criminal immigrants. Any applicant that cannot certify that their office will honor all ICE detainers for criminal immigrants will be ineligible for CJD funding. Further, any applicant that certifies full compliance with ICE detainer requests—but subsequently fails to honor an ICE detainer—will be subject to claw-back provisions and must refund the full amount of their CJD grant award.”

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