New York Sheriffs Sue Gov. Hochul Over Law Banning Cooperation with ICE, Alleging Constitutional Overreach

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Across New York State, county sheriffs – elected by their neighbors, sworn to uphold the Constitution – are being told they can no longer work with federal law enforcement to keep their communities safe. Not by a court. Not by a vote of the people. By a governor in Albany who apparently decided that scoring political points beats protecting citizens.

This should alarm anyone who values local governance and the rule of law. What’s unfolding in New York isn’t a routine policy disagreement. It’s an unprecedented move by a sitting governor to strip elected law enforcement officers of their ability to partner with federal agencies. And the consequences will land squarely on the communities those officers serve.

From Fox News:

More than a dozen New York sheriffs are suing over a state law prohibiting law enforcement from entering into or maintaining certain agreements with ICE for civil immigration enforcement, as Gov. Kathy Hochul dared the agency heads to “bring it on.”

A federal lawsuit led by Rensselaer County Sheriff Kyle Bourgault argues that the law is unconstitutional and unlawfully restricts elected sheriffs’ ability to enter into federally authorized immigration-enforcement agreements.

Governor Hochul’s “Local Cops, Local Crimes Act,” signed in May and taking effect this week, bans local and state law enforcement from entering into 287(g) partnerships with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. It also forces termination of existing detention agreements within three months. Translation: the governor has ordered New York’s police to stop cooperating with the federal government on civil immigration enforcement. Period.

A law built on a lie

Hochul wants New Yorkers to believe their sheriffs are out terrorizing innocent families. “We need local cops hunting down criminals, not kindergartners,” she proclaimed at her press conference. That’s nonsense, and she knows it.

Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin was blunt, explaining that his county’s program centered on running background checks – not conducting raids. That’s what 287(g) actually does. When local law enforcement encounters an illegal immigrant with a criminal history, they flag that individual for federal authorities. Simple. Effective. And now, thanks to Hochul, illegal in New York.

Here’s the kicker. Before 2025, only one county in the entire state even had a 287(g) agreement. The surge in counties seeking these partnerships tells you everything. They weren’t looking for trouble. They were drowning in it.

Sheriffs refuse to back down

Fifteen sheriffs have filed a federal lawsuit arguing the law guts the authority of independently elected constitutional officers to enter contracts authorized by federal law. These aren’t political appointees. They’re elected officials with a mandate from their own voters.

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman – Hochul’s Republican challenger for governor – has flatly refused to comply. His reasoning is hard to argue with: roughly 2,000 illegal immigrants in Nassau County alone carry criminal records.

“Kathy Hochul, where do you want those guns? What neighborhood do you want to destroy? Where do you want those drugs?” Blakeman asked. Nobody from Albany bothered to answer.

Instead, Attorney General Letitia James went on offense – against her own state’s law enforcement. She issued subpoenas to sheriff’s offices in Broome, Steuben, Nassau, and Rensselaer counties, plus the Nassau County Police Department. Cooperate with ICE, and the state will drag you to court. Remarkable.

The Department of Homeland Security put it plainly: Hochul “must stop putting politics above public safety.” They called the policy “insanity” that “leads to more crimes and more innocent victims.” Hard to sugarcoat that.

Campaign season dressed up as governance

So why is Hochul picking this fight? Look at the calendar. She’s running against Blakeman. She scheduled her press conference at the exact same time as his. She railed against “Stephen Miller’s inane deportation quotas” – a line crafted for campaign mailers, not serious policy discussion.

A governor who genuinely supported law enforcement wouldn’t be suing her own sheriffs. She wouldn’t be dispatching her attorney general to intimidate county officials whose crime was running background checks. And she definitely wouldn’t be smirking “bring it on” while communities absorb the fallout.

The sheriffs filing this lawsuit didn’t take an oath to Kathy Hochul. They swore to uphold the Constitution and protect the people who elected them. When the courts weigh in – and they will – New Yorkers should pray the law still recognizes that distinction, even if their governor has abandoned it entirely.

Key Takeaways

• Fifteen New York sheriffs are suing to block Hochul’s ban on local cooperation with ICE.
• The outlawed 287(g) agreements enabled background checks on criminal illegal immigrants – not raids.
• Hochul’s combative “bring it on” stance prioritizes her campaign over community safety.
• Elected sheriffs answer to their communities, not to Albany’s political theater.

Sources: Fox News, Spectrum News