Sanctuary For Criminals, Danger For Everyone Else

A policy advertised as protecting the innocent can instead shield the guilty, complicate law enforcement, and expose the innocent to greater danger.

Jim Cardoza | October 22, 2026

There is an inconvenient truth missing from much of America’s immigration debate: millions of people who entered this country illegally have established productive lives, raised families, worked hard, obeyed the law, and become valued members of their communities. They may have violated immigration law to get here, but they are not necessarily criminals in the ordinary sense of the word. Many are precisely the sort of neighbors any American would welcome.

And yet, some of the greatest dangers these people face may arise from the very politicians who claim to be their protectors.

Consider the extraordinary contradiction of so-called sanctuary policies. Politicians proclaim their compassion for undocumented immigrants while adopting rules that can prevent local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities when dangerous offenders are already in custody. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) must sometimes pursue those individuals in the community, where innocent people are far more likely to become entangled in enforcement operations.

A policy advertised as protecting the innocent can instead shield the guilty, complicate law enforcement, and expose the innocent to greater danger.

That is not compassion. It is a failure to distinguish between people who deserve our sympathy and those who threaten public safety.

Imagine an undocumented immigrant arrested and convicted of a serious violent crime. After serving his sentence, he is........

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