Metropolis Council leaders are contemplating taking authorized motion to dam what they’re calling Mayor Adams’ “appalling” new coverage that provides municipal staff the greenlight to permit federal immigration staff onto metropolis property with out warrants if their presence makes them “reasonably feel threatened.”
In a press release Friday, Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, Deputy Speaker Diana Ayala and Council Immigration Chairwoman Alexa Aviles stated the brand new coverage is “inconsistent” with town’s longstanding sanctuary legal guidelines, which maintain that municipal staff shouldn’t permit federal immigration brokers on metropolis property for immigration enforcement except they’ll current judicial warrants authorizing arrests of particular people.
Shawn Inglima for New York Every day Information
Diana Ayala talking throughout a press convention earlier than a New York Metropolis Council assembly at Metropolis Corridor in Manhattan, New York on Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023. (Shawn Inglima for New York Every day Information)
“The Council is considering all its legal options to reverse this appalling memo and hold the administration accountable,” the three high Council Democrats stated.
Spokespeople for the mayor didn’t instantly return requests for touch upon the authorized risk.
Town says the coverage is about security and defending staff. It states that “if, at any time, you reasonably feel threatened or fear for your safety or the safety of others around you, you should give the officer the information they have asked for [if available to you] or let them enter the site.”
“We are responsible for safeguarding the well-being of our city staff, which is why we have directed city employees not to put themselves in harm’s way during federal immigration enforcement interactions,” Adams’ spokesperson Liz Garcia stated Thursday. “Employees are advised to contact their legal counsel in such situations and to avoid verbal or physical altercations, as this could compromise their safety and hinder critical city services.”
Garcia additionally stated Thursday that it’s “misinformation” to say the administration is telling workers to cooperate with the feds, arguing such statements solely gas “anxiety within immigrant communities.”
In response to a supply instantly acquainted with the matter, Adams’ administration drew up the coverage in a bid to guard metropolis staff after President Trump and his staff began saying publicly they’d as soon as again within the White Home search to criminally prosecute any native officers within the U.S. making an attempt to intrude with federal immigration enforcement.
Trump sees many sanctuary metropolis legal guidelines as illegally blocking federal immigration enforcement actions. The administration filed swimsuit Thursday in opposition to Chicago Thursday. The lawsuit, in accordance with the Chicago Tribune, argues the Structure’s Supremacy Clause “prohibits Illinois, Chicago, Cook County, and their officials from obstructing the Federal Government’s ability to enforce laws that Congress has enacted or to take actions entrusted to it by the Constitution.”
Alexa Aviles talking at a press convention earlier than a New York Metropolis Council assembly at Metropolis Corridor in Manhattan, New York on Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023. (Shawn Inglima for New York Every day Information)
Trump, who’s threatening to deport all undocumented immigrants within the nation, has since launched highly-publicized deportation raids in New York and different main U.S. cities. There are not any recognized situations of such raids going down on metropolis authorities property in New York.
However Speaker Adams and her colleagues argued the brand new coverage successfully invitations Trump to start out performing such raids on municipal property, particularly as he has vowed to focus on “sensitive locations” like colleges and homes of worship, which was once off-grounds below federal coverage rescinded by Trump.
AP Photograph/Andres Kudacki
Migrant households depart for a stroll to high school in entrance of the Row Lodge that serves as migrant shelter on Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2023, in New York. (AP Photograph/Andres Kudacki)
“The mayor and every deputy mayor have the responsibility to prioritize New York City and New Yorkers, not cater to the Trump’s administration’s extremism that seeks to sow fear and tear New York City families apart,” the Council Dems stated.
Backlash in opposition to the brand new coverage comes as Adams has for months confronted criticism from fellow Democrats over what they see as his overly chummy relationship with Trump as he stays below indictment on corruption fees. Adams has pleaded not responsible and is meant to face trial in April, however his authorized staff can be making an attempt to persuade Trump’s Justice Division to drop his case.
The brand new Adams administration coverage says metropolis staff ought to all the time contact their company’s normal counsel if immigration brokers present up at their workplaces. They need to additionally ask the brokers for judicial warrants in the event that they’re making an attempt to achieve entry or get hold of details about particular people, the memo says.
Mayor Eric Adams speaks throughout his weekly press availability within the Blue Room at Metropolis Corridor Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025 in Manhattan, New York. (Barry Williams/ New York Every day Information)
However Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, a progressive Democrat and frequent Adams critic, stated the “reasonably feel threatened” carveout alerts to the feds they’ll get onto metropolis property with out warrants so long as they’re aggressive.
“Whatever its intent, this directive will encourage ICE to be even more violent and intimidating toward city workers and immigrant communities alike,” Williams stated. “It will force city workers to choose between their morals and their mayor’s orders.”
