WV bill would criminalize the transportation of undocumented people

CHARLESTON – A bill seeking to penalize the act of transporting or harboring an undocumented person is sitting in the Senate Judiciary Committee just days before the end of the session. 

House Bill 2894 amends current state code regarding human trafficking to include “smuggling,” defined as “knowingly transporting, transferring, receiving, isolating, enticing, or harboring an illegal alien to avoid enforcement of the laws.” The legislation has not appeared on the Senate Judiciary Committee agenda as of Tuesday, April 8. With sine die fast approaching, it’s unclear if HB 2894 will pass the committee or the Senate Floor—the final steps needed to complete its legislative journey and become law.

The bill further states that “any individual or entity that transports illegal aliens is engaged in human smuggling.” 

Immediate family members, like a spouse, parent, child or sibling, among others, are exempted from the proposed legislation. That leaves friends, coworkers and other acquaintances potentially facing a felony charge and between three and 15 years in prison if convicted.

HB 2894 passed the House of Delegates with broad bipartisan support March 31. During debate on the bill, Hansen took aim at the suggestion that the transportation of undocumented people is human smuggling. 

Hansen asked if a person traveling with a friend protected under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) could face charges under the bill. Del. JB Akers, R-Kanawha, clarified that any person protected from deportation in federal law would not meet the definition of “illegal alien” in the proposed bill. 

It’s unclear if the federal government will continue to protect DACA recipients. 

In January, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a Texas ruling that the DACA program was unconstitutional. The decision, which protects current DACA recipients, is likely to be appealed. And on March 23, federal immigration enforcement officers detained and deported a Kansas City father and DACA recipient.

Akers said the bill would only affect those knowingly trying to conceal a person’s immigration status to avoid law enforcement. 

“At the federal level, to be guilty of a crime such as this you essentially have to…be engaged in actively concealing…or attempting to stop someone from being discovered by law enforcement if they qualify as ‘illegal’,” Akers said. 

Hansen said many aspects of the bill still concerned him, including the financial cost, the way the bill was drafted, its potential impact on DACA recipients and language regarding “harboring” undocumented people. 

Del. Brandon Steele, R-Raleigh, said HB 2894’s goal was to take “monsters” off the street and uphold the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which abolished slavery and involuntary servitude except as punishment for a crime. 

HB 2894 ultimately passed the House with 96 members, including eight of the nine Democratic members, in support. Hansen was the only member to vote no. 

The American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia told Black By God: The West Virginian that the bill is concerning. 

“HB 2894 claims to address ‘human trafficking.’ What that really means is anyone–including churches–that provides a ride or shelter to an undocumented person would face a felony,” Billy Wolfe, Director of Communications for the ACLU-WV, said in a statement. 

Wolfe said the bill could also negatively affect the ability of undocumented people who have experienced human trafficking to seek restitution. 

“Enough is enough. Immigrants make our communities stronger,” Wolfe said. “They should be respected, not used as political punching bags.”