A former U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement official believes that a new initiative announced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office could circumvent sanctuary city protections and result in more captures.
“This would probably allow the U.S. Attorney’s Office and ICE to capture a few more individuals that are coming out of state and local jails in California than they otherwise would,” John Sandweg told KNX News’ Karen Adams, referring to Operation Guardian Angel. “But it’s not going to be a perfect workaround in the sense that it’s going to allow them to capture everybody who would otherwise be protected under California sanctuary laws.”
According to a Monday press release, Operation Guardian Angel, is a “program that seeks to neutralize California’s sanctuary state policy and protect Americans from criminal illegal aliens incarcerated in county jails by issuing federal arrest warrants for them.” Previously, detainers were issued for those individuals.
José Cristian Saravia-Sánchez was mentioned in the press release.
It said that the 30-year-old from Mexico had already been convicted of vehicle theft and was arrested 11 times since June 2022 before he shot and killed an Inglewood man who tried to stop him from stealing a catalytic converter this February. President Donald Trump’s administration has often cited crime as a reason for its increased efforts to crack down on illegal immigration.
More than 1.5 million illegal aliens are estimated to live in the Central District of California, where the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura are located. In Los Angeles County, the city of Los Angeles became a sanctuary city in late 2024, a move that prohibits “any City resources, including property or personnel, from being utilized for any immigration enforcement.”
Sandweg said that, even with Operation Guardian Angel in place, authorities will still be limited in what they can charge the illegal aliens with.
“What I would imagine they’re going to be focusing on is there are a couple of immigration-related crimes, which again are broadly prosecuted by the federal government, but usually at the border,” he said. “The big one is illegal entry and illegal reentry.”