The sanctuary policy, established in 1989 by then-Mayor Ed Koch, prohibits the use of municipal resources to assist federal authorities in most forms of immigration enforcement. However, the rule came under scrutiny after suspects involved in the Times Square attack were released without bail.
In a rally with elected city officials on Feb. 5, ICE Field Office Director Kenneth Genalo said the city and state policies restrict the New York Police Department (NYPD) from cooperating with federal immigration officials. ICE agents often have to rely on media sources to gather information about potential suspects due to the lack of cooperation from local authorities.
"We're no longer contacted, we're no longer called, and we have to check our databases, but obviously there's hundreds of people a week that are being arrested throughout the city. If we can't determine which one is being the most violent, we have to find out through the media, through the newspapers, through the acts of television outlets," he said.
According to the Summary of Statistics of ICE Detainers, the NYPD failed to honor the 109 detainee requests from ICE in 2023 due to the existing sanctuary policy. Genalo said they had no choice but to release the suspects "directly back into the community."
"Obviously, once they're back in the community, we have to then go look for them. The public safety factor for the community increases, but on top of it—also for my staff and my offices. Instead of being able to take custody of these individuals in the confines of a jail or a precinct, we now have to go out into the community – in the streets – where the criminals have the upper hand," he said.
Republican Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis also voiced her support for the reconsideration of the sanctuary policy. She cited recent crimes involving migrants, including the beating of two NYPD officers, as evidence of the need to ease the policy.
"Despite the city's attempts to play semantics, the reality is they're refusing to cooperate with federal detainer and deportation requests with administrative warrants from ICE, even as hundreds of migrants continue to be arrested for murder, stabbings, robberies, and assault across the city," she said.
"Thugs who pay the cartels thousands of dollars to be smuggled into our country and then proceed to commit crimes in our city should be arrested, detained and deported immediately and have any future immigration applications denied. Instead, thanks to New York’s ridiculous policies, they are wreaking havoc on our city, being arrested and released, only to return to the comfort of their luxury hotel rooms at taxpayer expense. It’s ludicrous."
City Council rejects calls to reconsider sanctuary policy
Mayor Eric Adams claimed he was open to reconsidering the policy, but such changes would require approval from the City Council to modify local laws. (Related: NYC Mayor Eric Adams mulling unconventional housing solutions for ILLEGALS.)
City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams firmly rejected calls to reconsider the city's sanctuary city status, dismissing accusations that the policy played a role in the recent assault on two NYPD officers in Times Square.
In a press conference at City Hall on Feb. 8, she stressed that there were "no plans" to stop the decades-old immigration rule.
The City Council speaker accused voices on the political right of mischaracterizing the practical implications of sanctuary status. She argued that focusing on the law in the context of the Times Square incident was unwarranted.
"Some have pointed to this repugnant and unfortunate incident as a reason to revisit policies advanced by Democratic and Republican mayors...who recognized that keeping city agencies and workers from being used for federal immigration enforcement is in the best interest of public safety. In reality, these bipartisan city policies have no connection to this incident. This was purely an issue of our local law enforcement solving and prosecuting an alleged crime," she stated.
Migrants.news has more stories about illegal aliens in the Big Apple.
Watch the video below to learn more about New York's migrant problem.
This video is from the Cleansing Flow channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:
Texas to ship “thousands” more illegals to sanctuary cities like NYC as Title 42 ends.
Mayor of sanctuary city New York angry as HALF the hotel rooms fill up with illegal aliens.
NYC to LIMIT shelter stays for migrant families to 60 DAYS.
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