DOJ Sues Oklahoma for Making Illegal Immigration a State Crime

The Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building is seen in Washington, on June 9, 2023. Alex Brandon/The Canadian Press/AP

The U.S. Department of Justice is suing the state of Oklahoma over a new law that makes illegal immigration a state crime enforceable by state police.

The law in question was approved by Oklahoma legislators in April and is set to go into effect on July 1. Similar laws have been passed in other Republican-led states, such as Iowa and Texas, and are facing similar challenges from the Justice Department.

Under the new law, foreign nationals illegally coming to and residing in Oklahoma would be charged with “impermissible occupation,” a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and a $500 fine. A second-time offense, upgraded to a felony, could result in the offender being held for two years behind bars and fined up to $1,000.

“A person commits an impermissible occupation if the person is an alien and willfully and without permission enters and remains in the State of Oklahoma without having first obtained legal authorization to enter the United States,” the law reads.

In all instances, those found guilty would be expelled from Oklahoma within 72 hours “following his or her conviction or release from custody, whichever comes later.”

DOJ Claims Exclusive Power

In its complaint filed Tuesday in the Western District of Oklahoma, the DOJ claims that the Oklahoma law “unconstitutionally intrudes on the federal government’s exclusive authority” to regulate immigration.

“Oklahoma’s law seeks to punish conduct already proscribed by federal law and to give state officials authority to impose penalties without federal involvement, including removing noncitizens from the State of Oklahoma,” the complaint stated.

“Under the carefully calibrated federal immigration scheme, States have no authority to exile noncitizens from the State because if all States enact such a provision, then noncitizens would effectively be forced out of the country,” the DOJ argued.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian Boynton, who heads the DOJ’s Civil Division, said in a statement that Oklahoma “cannot disregard the U.S. Constitution and settled Supreme Court precedent.”

“We have brought this action to ensure that Oklahoma adheres to the Constitution and the framework adopted by Congress for regulation of immigration,” he said.

The lawsuit comes about a week after Mr. Boynton sent Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond a letter, threatening to sue unless Oklahoma agrees to not enforce the law.

In his letter, the federal prosecutor pointed to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Arizona v. United States, a case concerning the constitutionality of a 2010 Arizona law that, among other things, made it a state crime for illegal immigrants to work in Arizona. In 2012, the high court’s 5-3 majority nullified most provisions of the Arizona law, saying they either operated in fields solely regulated by the federal government, or they interfered with federal enforcement efforts.

“It is fundamental that foreign countries concerned about the status, safety, and security of their nationals in the United States must be able to confer and communicate on this subject with one national sovereign, not the 50 separate States,” Mr. Boynton wrote, quoting from the Arizona ruling.

‘Sovereign Right’

Mr. Drummond pushed back in his response, saying since the federal government isn’t doing a good job handling the illegal immigration crisis, Oklahoma has no choice but to take the problem into its own hands.

“Your misguided demands ignore that Oklahoma has not only the sovereign right but also the solemn legal obligation, to protect its own borders and its own citizens,” he wrote in a May 17 letter to Mr. Boynton, pledging to “vigorously defend Oklahoma and its people.”

In defense of the “impermissible occupation” law, Mr. Drummond described the legal effort as a “meaningful, common-sense, and legally permissible” response to the federal government’s failure to curb the flow of illegal immigrants.

“Our law is straight forward [sic]: if a person lacks legal authorization to enter the United States, then he or she likewise may not enter and stay in the state of Oklahoma,” he wrote.

The attorney general also dismissed the DOJ’s argument about exclusive authority as “dubious at best.” Just because the federal government has “broad” authority when it comes to immigration, he argued, does not mean it can claim “exclusive power” on that matter.

“In short, Oklahoma has moved to protect its sovereignty—not in contradiction of federal law, but in complete compliance with it. The laws under challenge here do not extend or revise federal immigration restrictions, but merely enforce those restrictions more efficiently.”

In response to a request for comment, Mr. Drummond’s office referred The Epoch Times to the May 17 letter.