Tennessee Law Criminalizing Harboring Undocumented Immigrants Deemed Unconstitutional by Federal Lawsuit

The Southeastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has filed a federal lawsuit against Tennessee's new law, set to take effect on July 1, that makes it a criminal offense to harbor or provide shelter to undocumented immigrants. The lawsuit argues that the law is unconstitutionally vague, oversteps federal authority to regulate immigration, and could place churches, landlords, and immigrant communities in the state's crosshairs.

Key Takeaways:

• The Tennessee law creates a new criminal offense for human smuggling, which it classifies as concealing, harboring, or shielding people determined by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to be in the country illegally for financial gain.
• The lawsuit alleges that the law is unconstitutionally vague, as it does not define "shelter" and could be applied to prosecute churches providing day shelter to immigrants through soup kitchens or English Second Language classes.
• The language of the law, "has illegally entered or remained in the United States," is also vague, as it could be applied to pursue criminal cases involving sheltering individuals who entered the country illegally but have since gained protected status.
• The lawsuit argues that the law infringes on the First Amendment freedoms of church members to express their faith by providing services to migrants.
• Tennessee Republicans have called the bill a public safety measure, but opponents say it is vague enough to encompass a host of services provided to immigrants and could have a chilling effect on landlords and groups who serve immigrant communities.
• The law exempts lawyers and health care providers who aid immigrants, but defines "harbor" as "providing shelter" and does not define shelter.
• The lawsuit alleges that the Tennessee law violates the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution by attempting to regulate immigration – which is preempted by federal law – and the 14th Amendment by inviting "arbitrary enforcement" with its vague language.
• The lawsuit also alleges that the law infringes on the First Amendment, as the Lutheran church considers providing shelter to people regardless of their immigration status to be "an expression of their faith."

Statistics:

• 100% of the Tennessee lawmaking process was led by Republicans.
• 1,000+ calls have been received by the Eviction Right to Counsel program at the Nashville Hispanic Bar Association from Nashville residents who had been abruptly kicked out by their landlords after the law was signed.
• 1 new state felony – separate to existing laws against human trafficking – is created for what it terms "human smuggling" under the law.
• 14th Amendment to the US Constitution is cited by the lawsuit as a reason why the law is unconstitutional.
• 1,400 days is the length of time that two Venezuelan asylum seekers lived in one of the church's buildings, according to the complaint.

Sources:

• The Washington Post
• The Nashville Post
• American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma
• Tennessee-based Southeastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
• Nashville Hispanic Bar Association
• Nashville landlord Garrett Causey