Nassau County Complies With NY Law Ending ICE Agreements

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman announced Wednesday that the county will comply with a new New York state law that terminates formal 287(g) cooperation agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The legislation, which took effect this week, prohibits local officers from conducting immigration enforcement and bans local jails from holding individuals for ICE.

Blakeman described the law as dangerous and misguided, arguing that it removes a proven public safety tool used to manage criminal cases involving undocumented migrants. While he will follow the statute, he intends to instruct officers to cooperate with ICE agents whenever possible and will join a federal lawsuit filed by 15 county sheriffs challenging the law's constitutionality.

Governor Kathy Hochul defended the legislation, stating that local police should use taxpayer dollars to focus on catching local criminals rather than federal immigration enforcement. Attorney General Letitia James has already demanded compliance documents from Nassau and Rensselaer counties. The New York State Democratic Party further criticized Blakeman, with spokesperson Addison Dick accusing him of defending Trump-era policies and ignoring ICE misconduct.