Houston, TX—In what can only be described as a dishonest and utterly classless move, Shelley Sekula-Gibbs yesterday tried to use the tragic death of a Houston police officer to pass the buck on her years of support for Houston’s “sanctuary policy” with regards to illegal immigrants.

“Shelley Sekula-Gibbs has been a long-standing supporter of Houston’s sanctuary policy,” said Lampson for Congress campaign manager Mike Malaise.  “She only started trying to back away from this position when she started this race for Congress.  For her to try to use the death of this officer to shift blame for this policy from herself to the Houston Police Chief, who has just lost an officer, is an utterly classless maneuver.  It was, after all, her policy right up until it looked like Tom DeLay would have to leave Congress.”

The Associated Press and local Fox News 26 reported Monday evening that Shelley Sekula-Gibbs had called on Houston Chief of Police Harold Hurtt to “take responsibility” for Houston’s sanctuary policy with regards to illegal immigrants.  This was in response to the news that a Houston Police Officer had been killed by an illegal immigrant.  But what she is doing is asking the Chief of Police to take responsibility for her policy—the policy she routinely supported on City Council. 

In November 2005, then-Councilman Mark Ellis, who was seeking the GOP nomination for a state Senate seat, attempted to force a council vote on city’s policy allowing officers to ask people their immigration status only after they have been arrested for a different reason.  At the time, Sekula-Gibbs called Ellis’ proposal, which would also required people to show proof of U.S. citizenship to get social services, “a political stunt.”  According to the Houston Chronicle, “Sekula-Gibbs said it would be impossible to verify someone’s immigration status before, for example, putting out a fire. She said she also disapproved of Ellis’ tactic of trying to force a council vote on a nonbinding resolution.” [Houston Chronicle June 21, 2006]

Prior to being a candidate for Congress, Sekula-Gibbs also told the Chronicle that she had “no strong opinion” about changing Houston’s immigration policies.

And in June 2006, the Houston Chronicle reported that The Metropolitan Organization said that Shelley Sekula-Gibbs pledged to them that she would maintain the city’s current policy on dealing with illegal immigrants.  When the Chronicle pushed her on this group’s claim Sekula-Gibbs, “declined to discuss the pledge specifically.” [Houston Chronicle June 24, 2006]

“Nick Lampson disagrees with some of the city’s policies concerning illegal immigrants,” Malaise continued.  “For example, he does not think any American city should be a ‘sanctuary’ for illegal immigrants and he believes we should end the ‘catch and release policy’ that turns illegal immigrants discovered in Houston back into the populace.  But it is disingenuous for Sekula-Gibbs to bash Mayor White and Chief Hurtt in the wake of an officer’s death for policies she has always supported.  And it is wrong for her to shift blame from the current leadership in Congress who have failed to protect our borders.”

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Houston officer's killing sparks anger over immigration policy

Associated Press, September 25, 2006

Just hours after it became known that the accused killer of a Houston police officer was an illegal Mexican immigrant, top city officials braced themselves for another round of criticism of the city's policies toward illegal immigrants.

Houston police officer Rodney Johnson was shot four times in the head during a traffic stop last week. Investigators say Juan Leonardo Quintero, a Mexican national living in the United States illegally has confessed to killing Johnson, a father of five. Quintero had been deported once and crossed the border illegally again.

U.S. Rep John Culberson, R-Houston, reminded the public Monday of his efforts to cut off federal law-enforcement funds to the Houston Police Department if it refused to change its "sanctuary policy."

Since 1992, the police department has barred officers from asking people who aren't under arrest about their immigration status. The order also prohibits them from arresting people solely based on suspicion that they are in the country illegally. Police do check the immigration status of those arrested on Class B misdemeanor or more serious charges.

Congressional candidate Shelley Sekula-Gibbs called on Houston Mayor Bill White to immediately revoke the policy, which she said "protects the illegal criminal instead of protecting the citizens."

But White's administration, long accustomed to criticism of the policy from conservative politicians and talk radio hosts, said the city will not change its policy and blamed federal officials for failing to protect the U.S.-Mexico border.

Houston Police Chief Harold Hurtt has said repeatedly that Johnson's killing has nothing to do with the city's policy regarding illegal immigrants and everything to do with the federal government's failure to secure the border with Mexico.

"If the government fulfilled their responsibility of protecting the border, we would not probably be standing here today," Hurtt said soon after the shooting. Quintero had been deported in 2004 after being granted deferred adjudication on a charge of indecency with a child.

Had the federal government been able to secure the border, Hurtt said, "It would have been very difficult, if not impossible, for that individual to get back in this country."

Sekula-Gibbs, a Houston city councilwoman running a write-in campaign for the seat vacated by former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, said Hurtt "must take responsibility for his actions. Finger pointing doesn't help. That attitude (towards inquiring about immigration status) has gotten us into this terrible situation. What is the problem with enforcing these laws?"

Sekula-Gibbs' position on the issue has hardened considerably since she became a candidate for Congress. During a similar City Council debate on the policy in November, Sekula-Gibbs accused a colleague wanting to abandon the policy of a "political stunt" and told the Houston Chronicle she had no "strong opinion" about changing the police department's sanctuary policy.

Culberson, however, has consistently identified border security as one of his top issues, and he warned Monday that Houston, Dallas and Austin stand to lose millions of dollars in federal grants if they don't change their policies.

Culberson's amendment to the House appropriations bill would block all federal grants to any city not specifically allowing law enforcement officers to question anyone they stop about their citizenship status. Culberson said he would suggest that everyone stopped should be asked about their status to avoid racial profiling accusations. From there, he said, "It's Law Enforcement 101. We trust the officers to use their good judgment."

The White administration sees Culberson's bill as the ultimate unfunded mandate, cutting off badly needed federal law enforcement money to force the city's hand, White spokesman Frank Michel said.