Hochul poised to sign bill officially making New York a 'sanctuary state' for illegal immigrant criminals

New York legislators passed a bill Thursday formally establishing the state as a sanctuary jurisdiction, which imposed a sweeping ban on state law enforcement from cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The bill now goes to New York Governor Kathy Hochul's desk to be signed.

The wide-ranging legislation, pushed by Hochul, restricts law enforcement from working alongside ICE and bars ICE agents from most public spaces such as hospitals and parks. It also bans the use of masks for federal law enforcement, per the New York Post.

Thursday's passed legislation eliminates “287-g agreements” entirely and goes further still, banning any "informal cooperation" between police and ICE. "If it looks and it smells like the 287-g agreement, then it's part of what this law would say is not permissible," Assembly member Catalina Cruz said during debate over the bill.

"What the state is doing is ensuring that we are not using taxpayer dollars to enforce federal law," Cruz said. The bill provisions also enable people to take ICE agents to court for constitutional violations, such as entering a residence without a proper warrant.

Additionally, the legislation prohibits nearly all public employees from engaging with federal immigration officials unless a judicial warrant is first presented. It extends a mask ban to all federal law enforcement personnel.

Department of Homeland Security said in response to the story, "The message from Gov Kathy Hochul and her fellow sanctuary politicians is clear: criminal illegal aliens are WELCOME in New York. These policies make New Yorkers less safe."

Republican legislators strongly opposed the bill, which cleared both chambers Thursday ahead of an anticipated signature from Hochul. The governor had introduced her original anti-ICE proposal earlier this year after the Trump administration’s crackdown in Minnesota. Border czar Tom Homan has also threatened to surge ICE agents to New York if Hochul signs the measures into law.

"We're moving backwards in terms of public safety," GOP Assemblyman Garret Gandolfo said. "By handcuffing law enforcement and not giving them the tools they need to get violent individuals off the street, we are setting ourselves up for some real problems in the future."

Assemblyman Matt Slater raised the case of one of his constituents, Sheridan Gorman, who was murdered allegedly by a 25-year-old Venezuelan national who'd entered the country illegally and was released in 2023. "I have to go home to my district and talk to the Gorman family, who recently lost their daughter to a tragic situation," Slater (R-Dutchess) explained on the Assembly floor.

"When you hear what they have to say, they talk about a system that had failed their family. And I am not convinced that the changes here rectify or correct the systems that they have identified in that tragic case," he said.

GOP Gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman, who serves as Nassau County Executive, announced plans to challenge the law in court. "Kathy Hochul just sent a message to killers, rapists, and gang members around the world: come to New York!" Blakeman said. “Her latest pro-criminal policy shields thugs from arrest while forcing more ICE agents onto our streets."

"Every dangerous criminal protected by Kathy Hochul's policies is another threat to innocent New Yorkers. As Governor, I'll end this insanity and put the rights of law-abiding citizens ahead of criminals once and for all,” he added.