During the press briefing, Jean-Pierre fielded questions about rebuilding funds for the collapsed bridge in Baltimore, Ukraine funding in the House of Representatives, the killing of World Central Kitchen workers in Gaza and other topics. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
"We have been very, very clear about that. And if a person poses a danger to the community, they should be detained pretrial," she added.
In a follow-up question, Doocy asked if President Biden believes some liberal cities are too soft on crime generally.
"I'm not going to speak to every state or city here. It's not for me to speak to," Jean-Pierre said, declining to answer the question. She reiterated that Biden believes those guilty of crimes should be held accountable.
"We welcome local law enforcement support and cooperation in apprehending and removing [those] in this country who pose a risk to our national security or also public safety. If they are found guilty, they should be held accountable. That's our — that's where we stand on this."
Migrants flooded into Eagle Pass, Texas, waiting to be processed in December. (Fox News)
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have complained that "sanctuary" policies in certain Democrat-run cities have hampered their ability to get criminal aliens off the streets by prohibiting local law enforcement from cooperating with them.
When ICE believes a removable illegal immigrant has been arrested on criminal charges, it will lodge a detainer — a request that they be notified before the immigrant is released from custody and to keep them in custody until ICE can take custody of them.
But sanctuary jurisdictions generally do not honor detainers, sometimes arguing that enforcement is not their responsibility and that doing so has a chilling effect on relations between immigrants and the community.
"When law enforcement agencies fail to honor immigration detainers and release serious criminal offenders onto the streets, it undermines ICE’s ability to protect public safety and carry out its mission," ICE’s website warns.
Fox News Digital's Michael Dorgan, Bill Melugin and Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
Chris Pandolfo is a writer for Fox News Digital. Send tips to chris.pandolfo@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @ChrisCPandolfo.
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