A judge issued a restraining order on Monday, April 21, to stop New York City from proceeding with its plan to set up a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office inside Rikers Island. Judge Mary Rosado issued the written order ahead of a hearing on April 25.
New York City Council sues mayor over executive order
The New York City Council sued Mayor Eric Adams for entering into an agreement with ICE and federal agencies to establish themselves inside the jail. Council members accused Adams of entering into the agreement after the Justice Department dropped federal criminal charges filed against him.
The lawsuit claimed the agreement between Adams and the White House amounted to a “quid pro quo.” The DOJ said it dropped the charges because Adams’ charges “undermined” President Donald Trump’s deportation efforts.
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NYC mayoral candidate and City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams said the plan of allowing ICE agents into Rikers Island would make the people in the city feel nervous.
“Allowing ICE to operate an office on Rikers Island and carry out Trump’s destabilizing and extremist mass deportation agenda would make everyone in our city less safe. The Council stands firm in our efforts to protect the rights and safety of all New Yorkers against attacks by the Trump administration and its agents,” Adrienne Adams said.
She added the council looks forward to the hearing and appreciates the judge’s ruling to halt the executive order from taking place.
In a statement to multiple news outlets, a spokesperson for the mayor’s office said they are complying with the judge’s order and also awaiting Friday’s hearing.
How does NYC’s sanctuary law prevent ICE from operating in New York City prisons?
Before NYC’s sanctuary law went into effect in 2014, immigration officials could operate at Rikers. Current sanctuary law ensures all New Yorkers are protected regardless of their citizenship status, giving everyone access to medical care, education, jobs and the ability to report crimes without the risk of deportation. The law also prevents state and local authorities from working with federal officials to deport residents.
What does the executive order say?
Mayor Adams, a Democrat, has met multiple times with Trump’s “border czar,” Tom Homan, over the president’s push for immigration reform. One of the priorities Homan expressed during the meetings was access to New York City’s jail, which Adams and his first deputy mayor seemingly agreed to with an April 8 executive order.
Both Adams and the executive order said the office would not facilitate civilian immigration enforcement within the jail. However, the office will assist with gang and drug-related investigations.
“The safety of the City of New York has been jeopardized by violent transnational gangs and criminal enterprises—including transnational gangs such as MS-13 and Tren de Aragua—that have been designated by federal authorities as foreign terrorist organizations,” the order reads.
The order explains that agencies like the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Department of Homeland Security already have the authority to enforce federal laws in states and cities. This action just shares intelligence already collected by the Department of Corrections and the New York Police Department.
