Roughly a week after Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York announced new restrictions on federal immigration agents, including a mask ban, the Department of Homeland Security made clear it was girding for battle.
In an internal memo, the department’s general counsel assured agents that they were “not legally required to comply with state and local mask prohibitions while carrying out their official duties.”
The memo, dated May 15 and reviewed by The New York Times, added that officers should “freely perform their authorized duties without concern for state interference or fear of prosecution.”
The guidance signals that the agency has no intention of cooperating with a wave of legislation across the country that aims to curtail immigration enforcement after the deaths of two Americans at the hands of immigration officers in Minneapolis.
{snip}
The state will also prohibit informal and formal arrangements, called 287(g) agreements, between counties and ICE that had allowed the federal agency to use local law enforcement and jails to arrest and detain people suspected of being in the country illegally.
In a statement, the Department of Homeland Security said it does not comment on leaked materials. But it called mask bans like New York’s “despicable and a flagrant attempt to endanger our officers,” arguing that agents wear face coverings only to protect themselves and that under the Constitution, state and local politicians “do not control federal law enforcement.”
“To be crystal clear: We will not abide by unconstitutional bans,” the statement said.
{snip}
The post New York Wants to Restrict ICE Enforcement. ICE Has Other Ideas. appeared first on American Renaissance.
American RenaissanceRead More
T1
