‘No reason to have any concerns’: Wichita PD chief, sheriff on new human smuggling law

Wichita Police Chief Joseph Sullivan said Tuesday that there is “no reason to have any concerns” that an impending law will be used by his department to target anyone helping undocumented Kansans.

During a news conference, Sullivan, along with Sedgwick County Sheriff Jeff Easter, said he wanted to address “rumors and misinformation” about the law, which will take effect July 1.

The law defines “human smuggling” and “aggravated human smuggling.” Part of the law under human smuggling says the smuggler “benefits financially or receives anything of value” for what they did.

There are concerns that the law is too broad and could lead to people being arrested and prosecuted for helping people who are undocumented in ways such as giving a ride or offering them housing, especially if there is a charge for either.

Sullivan and Easter said that is not the intention of the law and that they would not arrest people in those situations.

“What’s a violation of this law is individuals that brought them here, or they are housing them here, and they are forcing them, the undocumented person, to do something that they will gain from,” Easter said. “That’s the confusion.”

Further, Sullivan mentioned a police policy that says officers “will not initiate action based solely on an individual’s immigration status” but would do so only if there is evidence of a crime. About some of the concerns from critics, Sullivan said “absolutely, positively not” would his department enforce the law in that way.

There is “no reason to have any concerns that this law will be (enforced) in that way in the city of Wichita,” he said. “I guarantee you that.”

Yeni Silva-Renteria, who is a commissioner on the Kansas Hispanic and Latino American Affairs Commission, said she hopes what the law enforcement officials said will mitigate residents’ fears.

“I’m always very cautious,” she said, adding “but I wouldn’t be worried yet” unless she hears it is being enforced in ways people have been concerned about.

Sullivan and Easter said the law is another avenue for officers to arrest those who are smuggling people.

Easter said current laws that may relate to similar instances of smuggling may not work as well. One example he gave was a person being brought to the U.S. and forced to pay off that debt by working at a massage parlor.

“That’s not kidnapping. That’s the problem. Sex trafficking is mainly toward juveniles,” he said. “So there was a gap. And I think the intent of this law was to fill that gap for individuals that are being victimized that are coming here.”

Sullivan said there were fewer than 30 cases of human trafficking, with eight arrests, that the department dealt with last year. He felt that number was much lower than the actual problem since people being smuggled often fear for themselves or their family if they reach out to authorities. Sullivan encouraged anyone who is being trafficked to call the police department. He said they could steer people toward the resources they need or investigate if there is a crime.

“When it comes to members of the undocumented community, they have nothing to fear in the city of Wichita,” he said. “Nothing will change for them.”

Sullivan said the law appears to be “overly broad” and could use reworking when the Legislature reconvenes.

Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett said some of the terms in the law may have common meaning in normal conversations, but have very specific meaning in court, meaning it could take very specific criminal actions — and not some of the concerns people have brought up — to fall under the law.

“So, I don’t think it poses much risk of being abused or applied to people or places that feed the poor, offer them clothes or a place that offers shelter, for instance,” Bennett said in an email.

Under the human smuggling aspect of the law, it says that the person:

• Knows or should have known that the person they are smuggling is in the U.S. illegally
• The smuggler receives money or something of value
• The smuggler knows or should have known that the person being smuggled is “likely to be exploited for the financial gain of another.”

Bennett said, the way the law is written, he believes it would take all three of those must be present “in order to trigger the law.”

This story was originally published June 13, 2023 at 2:36 PM.