DOJ Sues Eric Adams Over Sanctuary Policies: What To Know

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Billal Rahman is an immigration reporter based in London, U.K. He specializes in immigration policy and border security. He has uncovered allegations of misconduct among border agents under investigation and exposed claims of abuse at ICE-run detention centers in the U.S. He joined Newsweek in 2024 from The Independent. He has covered the British Post Office scandal and the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Originally from Glasgow, he studied Journalism in Edinburgh and then worked for STV News before moving to London in 2022. You can contact Billal at b.rahman@newsweek.com.

Billal Rahman

Immigration Reporter

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The Department of Justice has sued New York Mayor Eric Adams, challenging local “sanctuary” policies that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

It wants New York City’s sanctuary policies to be declared unconstitutional, saying they impede the enforcement of federal immigration laws.

Why It Matters

The Trump administration has viewed sanctuary cities and states as obstacles to immigration enforcement operations, with local police not involved in ICE activity. Sanctuary laws are designed to limit local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. These laws seek to protect immigrants in the country illegally by restricting the sharing of personal information with federal authorities and preventing local law enforcement from assisting in immigration arrests. Critics argue that sanctuary laws impede immigration enforcement operations.

In the lawsuit, the federal government is seeking to have the court declare New York City’s sanctuary policies unconstitutional under the Supremacy Clause and to issue an injunction preventing the city from enforcing its limited-cooperation provisions.

“Some of these aliens find safe havens from federal law enforcement detection in so-called ‘sanctuary’ cities, where they are shielded among innocent Americans—who, all too often, later become their crime victim,” the DOJ wrote in its complaint.

The complaint was brought in the Eastern District of New York and names Adams’ administration as the defendant.

The DOJ’s complaint says that New York City’s refusal to hold individuals beyond their scheduled release time at the request of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), along with its prohibition on sharing release or incarceration information without a state court warrant or a conviction for a serious crime, directly conflicts with federal immigration statutes and the authority of the executive branch.

New York first implemented limited-cooperation policies in 2013, expanded them in 2014 and 2017, and solidified them further through Executive Order 50, signed in 2022. These measures restrict local law enforcement and correctional facilities from cooperating with federal immigration authorities in most cases.

Under the law, the city is permitted to honor detention requests only for individuals convicted of “violent or serious” crimes—a list that includes more than 170 offenses, such as rape and murder. Additionally, ICE must provide a warrant signed by a federal judge with each request in order for it to be considered.

“New York City has released thousands of criminals on the streets to commit violent crimes against law-abiding citizens due to sanctuary city policies,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “If New York City won’t stand up for the safety of its citizens, we will.”

In the early days of Trump’s second term, Adams appeared to strike an informal agreement with the White House. He appeared on Fox News alongside border czar Tom Homan, pledging to cooperate with ICE on targeting serious criminal immigrants. However, publicly, he has maintained he only backs the arrest of serious criminals.

What People Are Saying

Adams’ Press Secretary Kayla Mamelak Altus told Newsweek: “The job of a mayor is to protect the safety of every single person in their city — and that’s exactly what Mayor Adams has worked to do every day for nearly four years. Keeping New Yorkers safe also means making sure they feel safe, and Mayor Adams has been clear: no one should be afraid to dial 911, send their kids to school, or go to the hospital, and no New Yorker should feel forced to hide in the shadows.

“That’s why the mayor supports the essence of the local laws put in place by the City Council — but he has also been clear they go too far when it comes to dealing with those violent criminals on our streets and has urged the Council to reexamine them to ensure we can effectively work with the federal government to make our city safer. So far, the Council has refused. We will review the lawsuit.”

Tom Decker, a former director of ICE’s New York field office, told Newsweek: “Sanctuary cities threatens everyone in the United States. Local law enforcement within sanctuary cities are prevented to work alongside ICE to protect the community by the foolish policies passed by local officials.”

Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a post on X: “The Department of Justice is suing New York City and Mayor Eric Adams for continuing to obstruct law enforcement with sanctuary city policies. If New York’s leaders won’t step up to protect their citizens, we will.”

Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumat said in a statement: “For too long, New York City has been at the vanguard of interfering with enforcing our immigration laws. Its efforts to thwart federal immigration enforcement end now.”

Update 07/25/25, 9:55 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from Mayor Eric Adams’ office