New York Governor Kathy Hochul and New York Attorney General Letitia James on Monday sued the Trump Administration to protect a package of state laws establishing accountability measures concerning immigration and law enforcement operations in New York.
One of the laws, set to take effect on Friday, prohibits local, state and federal law enforcement officers from concealing their identity with masks while interacting with the public and requires all officers to display clear identification.
Another bill, The Local Cops, Local Crimes Act, ensures local law enforcement can remain focused on local community safety issues by prohibiting local governments and law enforcement agencies from entering into agreements to operate as immigration officers or to detain people solely for federal civil immigration violations. The law also prohibits the use of public subsidies for civil immigration detention facilities.
After New York enacted the laws, the Trump administration last week notified the state it intended to sue. In response, Hochul requested the Attorney General ask the court to declare that the laws are legal and to prevent the Trump Administration from interfering with New York’s authority to protect public safety, promote transparency and govern the use of state and local resources, according to officials.
“A badge carries with it a responsibility to uphold the public’s trust. New Yorkers deserve to know who is enforcing the law in their communities and have the assurance that local resources are being deployed to protect public safety, not to intimidate or advance the agenda of a rogue federal agency,” Hochul said in a statement. “These laws reflect New York’s values, and we’re not going to let anyone bully us into abandoning them.”
Masked federal immigration officers have flooded communities across the country as part of the federal government's mass deportation agenda. The officers have often failed to clearly identify themselves to the public while carrying out enforcement operations, sowing fear, undermining public trust and increasing the risk that bad actors could impersonate law enforcement officers, the governor's office said. In one high-profile operation on Canal Street in New York City, masked agents terrified residents and created chaos in the community, officials said.
The lawsuit asks the court to declare that the Trump Administration’s efforts to prevent enforcement of the state's new immigration protections violates the Tenth Amendment, and to block the administration from taking any action to prevent enforcement of the laws.
“By hiding their faces and refusing to wear identification, federal immigration officers endanger New Yorkers and intentionally evade accountability,” said James. “Our communities should not have to live in fear of being disappeared by unidentified masked agents. If the federal government wants to brazenly defy our laws, then we will fight tooth and nail in court to ensure transparency and keep all New Yorkers safe.”
