Los Alamitos wants out of California’s sanctuary state movement – what are the legal repercussions?

File: In this handout provided by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, foreign nationals were arrested this week during a targeted enforcement operation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) aimed at immigration fugitives, re-entrants and at-large criminal aliens Feb. 9, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia.

On Monday, the Los Alamitos City Council voted 4-1 to exempt their city from the Senate Bill 54 law that bars local law enforcement from working with ICE agents.

In a mostly blue state, the city is unique in opposing California’s sanctuary state efforts, although various California Sheriff’s Associations have also spoken out against SB 54.

Some legal scholars have said this ordinance might instigate a lawsuit. The ACLU has said it will litigate if the measure moves forward.

Why did Los Alamitos vote to exempt itself from sanctuary state laws? Is the city facing potential legal backlash?

Guests:

Troy D. Edgar, Mayor of Los Alamitos, who voted for the ordinance

Sameer Ahmed, a staff attorney at the ACLU of Southern California; he is one of five authors of a letter sent to the City Council of Los Alamitos opposing the decision

Claude Arnold, a retired special agent who was in charge of U.S. ICE investigations at their L.A. office; he is a consultant at Frontier Solutions, a crisis management firm based in L.A.