Federal judge rules ICE cannot operate at Rikers Island

NEW YORK - New York State's Supreme Court ruled on Monday that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) cannot reopen an office at Rikers Island, a move NYC Mayor Eric Adams announced earlier this year. 

In April, the mayor signed an executive order that would have allowed ICE agents into the jail complex in order to assist in criminal investigations, particularly into transnational gangs.

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ICE previously operated within Rikers for years, which led to the deportation of thousands of immigrants. In 2014, under Mayor Bill de Blasio, the New York City Council passed sanctuary city laws that prohibited the agency from continuing to do so. 

Judge Mary Rosado declared the order "null and void" — calling it an "impermissible appearance of a conflict of interest," in her seven-page decision. She's, of course, referring to Adams' dropped federal corruption case. The mayor's case was reportedly dropped in exchange for his cooperation with the Trump administration's immigration agenda. 

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What they're saying:

The city plans to appeal the ruling. In a statement, First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro said that the mayor's office "vehemently disagrees" with the judge's decision. 

"Let’s be clear: at no point does the judge dispute that the substance of our executive order fully complies with local law — that’s because it does," he said. "There is also no actual conflict of interest here, and the mayor responded to the appearance of a conflict by delegating this issue to me as his first deputy mayor." 

Judge Rosado, however, wrote that Adams could have appointed an "independent, impartial and insulated official" to handle the decision but instead decided to "fully taint the entire process."

New York's City Council sued the mayor over the order in April. They, along with immigration advocates, argued that allowing ICE into Rikers could lead to civil rights violations. 

"We’re pleased that the court recognized Mayor Adams and Randy Mastro’s attempt to do Trump’s bidding and betray their obligation to New Yorkers as unlawful," Adrienne Adams, the Council speaker, said in a statement with three other Democratic Council members. "This decision protects the civil rights of all New Yorkers from being violated and makes our city safer."

President and CEO of the New York Immigration Coalition, Murad Awawdeh, said in a statement that with her decision, Judge Rosado "offered a vital degree of protection for our immigrant neighbors." 

"Thousands of New Yorkers will no longer face the prospect of detention and deportation because they were sent to Rikers after being simply accused – not convicted – of a crime," Awawdeh said. "New York City must never collude with the federal administration’s mass deportation agenda, and our mayor should be ensuring that every New Yorker has their due process rights protected." 

Still, ICE has sought to work with local governments and law enforcement agencies to deport undocumented immigrants who are already in custody. The agency says it's a simple way to target people who already endanger public safety.