NYC Council leaders weighing legal action to block Mayor Adams’ new ICE enforcement policy

City Council leaders are considering taking ineligible enactment to artifact what they are calling Mayor Adams’ “appalling” caller argumentation that gives municipal workers the greenlight to let national migration workers onto metropolis property without warrants if their beingness makes them “reasonably consciousness threatened.”

The argumentation archetypal came to airy Thursday, erstwhile the Daily News reported it was disseminated successful a Jan. 13 memo to each metropolis authorities agencies, including the nationalist infirmary and structure systems arsenic good arsenic the Police and Education Departments.

In a connection Friday, Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, Deputy Speaker Diana Ayala and Council Immigration Chairwoman Alexa Aviles said the caller argumentation is “inconsistent” with the city’s longstanding sanctuary laws, which clasp that municipal workers shouldn’t let national migration agents connected metropolis spot for migration enforcement unless they tin contiguous judicial warrants authorizing arrests of circumstantial individuals.

Shawn Inglima for New York Daily News

Diana Ayala speaking during a property league earlier a New York City Council gathering astatine City Hall successful Manhattan, New York connected Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023. (Shawn Inglima for New York Daily News)

“The Council is considering each its ineligible options to reverse this appalling memo and clasp the medication accountable,” the 3 apical Council Democrats said.

Spokespeople for the politician didn’t instantly instrumentality requests for remark connected the ineligible threat.

The metropolis says the argumentation is astir information and protecting workers. It states that “if, astatine immoderate time, you reasonably consciousness threatened oregon fearfulness for your information oregon the information of others astir you, you should springiness the serviceman the accusation they person asked for [if disposable to you] oregon fto them participate the site.”

“We are liable for safeguarding the well-being of our metropolis staff, which is wherefore we person directed metropolis employees not to enactment themselves successful harm’s mode during national migration enforcement interactions,” Adams’ spokesperson Liz Garcia said Thursday. “Employees are advised to interaction their ineligible counsel successful specified situations and to debar verbal oregon carnal altercations, arsenic this could compromise their information and hinder captious metropolis services.”

Garcia besides said Thursday that it’s “misinformation” to assertion the medication is telling employees to cooperate with the feds, arguing specified statements lone substance “anxiety wrong migrant communities.”

According to a root straight acquainted with the matter, Adams’ medication drew up the policy successful a bid to support metropolis workers aft President Trump and his squad started saying publically they would erstwhile backmost successful the White House question to criminally prosecute immoderate section officials successful the U.S. trying to interfere with national migration enforcement.

Trump sees galore sanctuary metropolis laws arsenic illegally blocking national migration enforcement actions. The administration filed suit Thursday against Chicago Thursday. The lawsuit, according to the Chicago Tribune, argues the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause “prohibits Illinois, Chicago, Cook County, and their officials from obstructing the Federal Government’s quality to enforce laws that Congress has enacted oregon to instrumentality actions entrusted to it by the Constitution.”

Alexa Aviles speaking astatine a property league earlier a New York City Council gathering astatine City Hall successful Manhattan, New York connected Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023. (Shawn Inglima for New York Daily News)

Trump, who’s threatening to deport each undocumented immigrants successful the country, has since launched highly-publicized deportation raids successful New York and different large U.S. cities. There are nary known instances of specified raids taking spot connected metropolis authorities spot successful New York.

But Speaker Adams and her colleagues argued the caller argumentation efficaciously invites Trump to commencement performing specified raids connected municipal property, particularly arsenic helium has vowed to people “sensitive locations” similar schools and houses of worship, which utilized to beryllium off-grounds nether national argumentation rescinded by Trump.

AP Photo/Andres Kudacki

Migrant families permission for a locomotion to schoolhouse successful beforehand of the Row Hotel that serves arsenic migrant structure connected Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2023, successful New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

“The politician and each lawman politician person the work to prioritize New York City and New Yorkers, not cater to the Trump’s administration’s extremism that seeks to sow fearfulness and teardrop New York City families apart,” the Council Dems said.

Backlash against the caller argumentation comes arsenic Adams has for months faced disapproval from chap Democrats implicit what they spot arsenic his overly chummy narration with Trump arsenic helium remains nether indictment connected corruption charges. Adams has pleaded not blameworthy and is expected to basal proceedings successful April, but his ineligible squad is besides trying to convince Trump’s Justice Department to driblet his case.

The caller Adams medication argumentation says metropolis workers should ever interaction their agency’s wide counsel if migration agents amusement up astatine their workplaces. They should besides inquire the agents for judicial warrants if they’re trying to summation introduction oregon get accusation astir circumstantial individuals, the memo says.

Mayor Eric Adams speaks during his play property availability successful the Blue Room astatine City Hall Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025 successful Manhattan, New York. (Barry Williams/ New York Daily News)

But Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, a progressive Democrat and predominant Adams critic, said the “reasonably consciousness threatened” carveout signals to the feds they tin get onto metropolis spot without warrants arsenic agelong arsenic they’re aggressive.

“Whatever its intent, this directive volition promote ICE to beryllium adjacent much convulsive and intimidating toward metropolis workers and migrant communities alike,” Williams said. “It volition unit metropolis workers to take betwixt their morals and their mayor’s orders.”