Federal judge keeps New York law limiting local police cooperation with ICE in force

A federal judge dismissed a challenge brought by 15 New York county sheriffs seeking to suspend the state law that limits cooperation between local police and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), so the law remains fully in force.

The ruling, by federal Judge Mae A. D'Agostino and reported on November 5, upholds the law known as the Local Cops, Local Crimes Act, enacted in May, which bars formal agreements under which local officers take on federal immigration enforcement duties or hold people for purely administrative offenses, including 287(g) agreements with ICE.

The judge concluded that the sheriffs lacked the legal standing needed to seek suspension of the state provision. New York Attorney General Letitia James and Governor Kathy Hochul had defended the law when the lawsuit was filed in August, saying public safety resources should go toward fighting crime in communities, not doing ICE's work.

For immigrants who live in or travel through the state, the ruling clarifies the scope of local custody: police departments will not act as an extended arm of immigration authorities in civil cases. That does not stop ICE from carrying out its own operations in New York, nor does it halt cooperation when criminal investigations are involved.

The legal dispute continues in other venues, including a Justice Department lawsuit against the state, but for now the restriction on local police remains firmly in place.

Photo: Archivo A Lo Claro

Source: Libero