U.S. District Court Judge Mae A. D’Agostino in Albany has given a win to New York Gov. Kathy Holchul and Attorney General Letitia James who were sued by the Trump administration’s Department of Justice (DOJ) that sought to challenge New York’s Protect Our Courts Act. The law was designed to prevent federal agents from making arrests of immigrants at courthouses without a valid warrant. The lawsuit was filed in June.
The Trump administration’s agents have developed a pattern of arresting people who were making mandated appearances in court without first obtaining a warrant. New York noted that civil immigration arrests at state courthouses had increased by about 1,200%.
The judge dismissed the DOJ’s lawsuit, as had been requested by the defendants. The lawsuit named the United States of America as the plaintiff . Named as defendants were the State of New York, Kathleen Hochul, governor of New York in her official capacity, and Letitia A. James, attorney general of New York in her official capacity.
D’Agostino wrote that the complaint by the DOJ raises three separate claims under the Supremacy Clause of the U. S. Constitution: that federal law preempts state law; that the New York law was unlawful regulation of the federal government; and that New York was engaging in unlawful discrimination against the federal government.
“Invalidating New York’s protections against civil immigration arrests of residents participating in state court proceedings and accessing state facilities for state services would mean that ‘state participation in [immigration enforcement] efforts would no longer be voluntary,’” the judge’s decision said. “The Tenth Amendment (of the U.S. Constitution) permits a state to decline to assist with federal immigration efforts, that state’s determination that it’s interests are best served by not permitting its resources to be conscripted for federal immigration enforcement cannot be invalidated merely by recasting that otherwise permissible choice under the intergovernmental immunity lens.”
The judge ruled that failing to dismiss the case as the defendants asked “would improperly elevate the concerns of the federal sovereign over that of a State and deprive New York of its essential ability to protect its sovereign interests in the face of undue federal interference.”
After the judge’s ruling, James said, “Everyone deserves to seek justice without fear. This ruling ensures that anyone can use New York’s state courts without being targeted by federal authorities. My office will continue fighting to defend the dignity and rights of immigrant communities throughout New York.”
