ALBANY, N.Y. — Federal Judge Mae D’Agostino has denied a group of sheriffs’ request to block New York State’s ban on agreements with Immigration & Customs Enforcement.
On Aug. 25, 15 New York sheriffs filed a lawsuit against Governor Kathy Hochul and Attorney General James, arguing that the move jeopardized public safety.
On Nov. 4, just one day after she won reelection, James declared the sheriffs’ attempt dead in the water on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Local law enforcement should be focused on keeping New Yorkers safe, not carrying out the administration’s cruel mass deportation agenda,” said James. “We will continue to defend our laws in court.”
In her ruling, Judge D’Agostino said the 15 sheriffs “have not established a likelihood that they have capacity to sue defendants for the alleged constitutional violations; their request for preliminary injunctive relief is denied.”
The lawsuit named three Central New York sheriffs as petitioners. Those are Madison County Sheriff Todd Hood, Oswego County Sheriff Don Hilton and Cayuga County Sheriff Brian Schenck.
In late July, Hochul and James sent letters to local law enforcement agencies demanding they terminate any agreements with ICE. The letter demanded that they comply with New York State’s “Local Cops, Local Crimes Act.”
That legislation was enacted on May 27. It prohibits local government and law enforcement from conducting civil immigration enforcement.
The lawsuit claims that the New York State law conflicts with federal laws. The suit said that, per Congress, partnerships between local, state, and federal agencies are encouraged to enter into written agreements in which local law enforcement assists with the identification, detention and removal of illegal immigrants violating federal law.
The plaintiffs also argued that sheriffs are independently elected, are not subordinate to the governor or attorney general and are permitted to exercise their “own judgment.”
“Under the New York Constitution’s guarantees of Home Rule (Article IX) and Separation of Powers, and under the independent status of their office, they possess the authority to make their own judgments about whether and how to participate in the cooperative framework Congress created,” the lawsuit said.
On Aug. 17, Sheriff Hood announced that his office terminated its agreement with ICE. However, additional details of the termination were not released.
The Madison County Sheriff’s Office was one of 12 in New York State that received letters from the governor and attorney general demanding that they end their agreements and that they were out of compliance with state law.
Those letters demanded that any agency out of compliance submit proof of termination of its agreement.