Too little too late.
A annoyed metropolis lawmaker on Wednesday referred to as to reopen a long-shuttered federal immigration outpost at Rikers Island, whereas slamming the mayor for his flip on the town’s “sanctuary city” standing.
“Tough talk is good, but actions speak louder,” Queens Councilman Robert Holden stated in an announcement. “The mayor had the possibility to amend or repeal sanctuary metropolis legal guidelines by way of his Constitution Revision Fee however selected to not. Now, it’s time to proper these wrongs.
“To truly show commitment to public safety, Mayor Adams should reopen the ICE office at Rikers Island and give the NYPD, [Department of Corrections], [Department of Probation] the ability to communicate with ICE and honor detainers for criminal migrants,” Holden stated.
Holden’s name comes after Adams waffled on his long-standing assist for the town’s sanctuary metropolis standing, which features a vow to not cooperate with federal immigration authorities.
Beleaguered by the migrant disaster overwhelming the 5 boroughs, Adams this week stated he’s recreation if the feds need to deport immigrants who commit crimes within the metropolis — and vowed to take a seat down with President-elect Donald Trump’s unbending border czar, Tom Homan.
“My position is people who commit crimes in our city, you have abdicated your right to be in our city and I am open to figure out the best way to address that,” he stated Tuesday. “Those who are here committing crimes, robberies shooting at police officers, raping innocent people, have been a harm to our country.”
Adams did recommend loosening the sanctuary metropolis restrictions for asylum in search of criminals in February, however had beforehand touted the migrant-friendly designation.
Holden stated he and different council members’ requires a reversal of the coverage have nonetheless fallen on deaf ears, together with in a July 19 letter to Metropolis Corridor during which Holden complained that “supporting sanctuary metropolis legal guidelines means defending criminals and terrorists.
“The safety and security of our city and its residents depend on decisive and immediate action,” he wrote. “We owe it to the victims of 9/11 and to our loved ones today to address these vulnerabilities head-on.”
In September, the council’s nine-member “Common Sense Caucus” penned a letter to Gov. Kathy Hochul expressing concern over “the ongoing migrant crisis.”
And final month, Holden wrote to Hochul, state legislative leaders and Adams to once more specific concern over a sanctuary metropolis designation that “put New Yorkers in hurt’s method.
“Let’s work together to root out criminal illegal aliens, not obstruct federal law enforcement,” he stated. “As elected officials, protecting our communities and upholding the rule of law must be our highest priority.”
On Wednesday, Holden stated a essential start line is to reestablish a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement workplace at Rikers Island, which was shut down by former Mayor Invoice de Blasio in 2015.
The outpost gave federal immigration officers a foothold to grab and deport convicted migrants.
The town has doled out greater than $6 billion to accommodate, feed and police the flood of migrants who’ve flooded into the 5 boroughs since 2022, with the violent Venezuelan road gang Tren de Aragua establishing a foothold out of the tax-funded shelters.
The mayor’s workplace didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark from The Submit.
Further reporting by Carl Campanile
