House GOP Advances Sanctuary Bill That Would Let Crime Victims Sue Local Officials Who Ignore Detainers

House Republicans are preparing to bring the Shut Down Sanctuary Policies Act to the floor after the midterm elections, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan told Just the News. The measure, H.R. 7640, cleared the committee in March and would preempt state and local laws that restrict cooperation with federal immigration authorities while giving crime victims a new avenue to sue the jurisdictions that released the perpetrators.

Jordan described the private-right-of-action provision as the bill’s most significant tool. It would allow an individual—or a spouse, parent, or child if the victim is deceased or permanently incapacitated—who is the victim of a murder, rape, or other felony committed by an illegal immigrant to sue a state or local government that failed to honor a Department of Homeland Security detainer or otherwise released the individual under sanctuary policies. The provision would limit certain forms of civil immunity that state and local officials currently enjoy in some jurisdictions.

“It allows people who've been harmed, where local political leaders tell the local law enforcement they can't work with federal law enforcement, detainers aren't honored … to go take that city, take that state to court, and say, 'look, this was ridiculous. What happened and was so wrong, so tragic,'” Jordan said. He added that lawmakers “got a good deal that we worked long and hard on” and need to pass the legislation in the lame-duck period.

In addition to the lawsuit mechanism, the bill would reassert federal supremacy over conflicting state and local rules, require authorities to honor DHS detainers for illegal immigrants arrested for criminal or motor-vehicle offenses who are subject to removal, and make noncompliant jurisdictions ineligible for certain federal law-enforcement and immigration grants. Those funds would be reallocated to jurisdictions that cooperate. The legislation also provides immunity protections for officers and entities that comply with its requirements and allows related cases to be removed to federal court.

Rep. Tom McClintock of California introduced H.R. 7640 on February 23. The Judiciary Committee approved it on March 5 and formally reported it on March 12, placing it on the Union Calendar. Cosponsors include Reps. Ben Cline, Troy Nehls, Harriet Hageman, Russell Fry, and Thomas Tiffany. A committee report noted that sanctuary jurisdictions have declined at least 41,085 detainers since October 2022 according to ICE data, and that New York alone released nearly 7,000 criminal aliens in a ten-month period in 2025 after declining detainers linked to homicides, assaults, and other offenses.

The renewed push follows recent high-profile cases involving illegal immigrants released under prior administrations or sanctuary policies. DHS has highlighted one California case in which an illegal immigrant from India who had been released stalked and killed a woman in a Sacramento parking lot. Jordan’s committee has also issued subpoenas and staff reports examining sanctuary practices in Colorado and other jurisdictions.

Jordan indicated the legislation is ready for a floor vote once the lame-duck session begins. No Senate companion has advanced to the same stage, and the bill has not yet received a full House vote. Opponents have argued that such measures would compel local resources for federal immigration work and undermine community trust; the committee report and Jordan’s comments emphasize public-safety consequences of releases that ignore federal detainers.