Acting Police Chief Newsham says DC will not enforce civil immigration laws

"I can tell you unequivocally in Washington, D.C. we are not going to enforce civil immigration laws," Acting D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham said in an interview with FOX 5 Friday morning. "I think that I feel very strongly that it will only create a divide between part of the community that we serve."

"When you're dealing with local crime in a big city like Washington, D.C., you really need to have the trust of your community. And to get local police involved in civil immigration enforcement is only going to draw a divide between you and the community," he said.

"The cornerstone to American policing is really trust, and I'm adamantly opposed to anything that's going to create distrust between us and anybody who lives or works or visits Washington, D.C."