U.S. District Judge Mae D’Agostino dismissed the Trump administration’s lawsuit against a New York law that prohibits U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from making arrests at courthouses.
This refusal to cooperate with President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement tactics marks a small victory for the rights of New York immigrants. It’s also a reminder that amid a 1,200% increase in civil immigration detentions at state courthouses over three years, states do have the right to resist aggressive federal interference.
New York, with its reputation as a cultural and economic powerhouse, owes much to the contributions of immigrants from every corner of the world. New York is home to hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants who fill essential roles in the labor force and contribute billions of dollars in spending and taxes annually.
It’s only natural that New York is considered a sanctuary city, with policies protecting undocumented immigrants dating back to the 1980s. However, places with sanctuary laws are now targets of the Trump administration.
Trump’s justification for the lawsuit was that the law was unconstitutional, which is simply untrue. The 10th Amendment protects state and local governments from being compelled to enforce federal immigration laws.
The federal judge rejected the Trump administration’s claims, rightfully pointing out the self-contradictions of ICE.
“ICE’s own prior policies urging discretion in conducting enforcement activities expressly acknowledged the potential that such activities may ‘deter individuals from reporting crimes and from pursuing actions to protect their civil rights,’” D’Agostino wrote in the ruling.
Since Trump took office, ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection have forcefully expanded their presence in criminal and civil courts. This includes detaining people attending family court, in their homes and on the street. ICE arrests at courthouses undermine people’s rights to due process and foster fear and distrust in the justice system.
Undocumented immigrants should not be intimidated from reporting crimes and asserting their civil rights for fear of arrest. Citizens and noncitizens share the fundamental protection under the law, an increasingly important fact as undocumented immigrants are vulnerable to discrimination amid growing anti-immigrant rhetoric.
The right to access courts is a foundational right that ensures the justice system can function correctly. The risk of enabling ICE arrests at courthouses far outweighs any proposed benefit.
