PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. (WCAX) – North County law enforcement in our region has split over whether to join a lawsuit against a New York law restricting cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration officials.
“What else are they going to try to do next to try and handcuff us to not do our jobs,” said Franklin County Sheriff Jay Cook, whose department last week joined the lawsuit against the Local Crimes, Local Cops Act, calling it unconstitutional.
“The reason I joined is to support all of the other agencies and sheriff’s offices because I feel it is very important, especially as a border county, to cooperate,” Cook said.
However, some North Country counties chose not to sign on, at least for now. That includes Clinton County Sheriff Dave Favro, who says it’s up to local lawmakers to decide if they want to take on the lawsuit’s financial liability.
“The reason I didn’t initially sign on is there’s paperwork that we have to sign that talks about fees and expenses and repercussions that talks about future cases and actions, that has to be approved by the legislature of Clinton County,” Favro said.
And while Favro says he supports the lawsuit, he also says there are elements of the new law he thinks are a good idea, like not leaving state taxpayers on the hook for the federal government’s work. “We are not an economically rich community up here, and for them to have to foot the bill and pay for local law enforcement up here — I struggle with that; I don’t think that’s our place to have to do that,” Favro said.
Favro says he hasn’t ruled out joining the lawsuit.
Gov. Kathy Hochul calls the suit a “frivolous waste of taxpayer dollars” and says “the courts have already declined to block this law once.”
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