(DailyAnswer.org) – Democratic New York City Mayor Eric Adams has called for the city to amend its “sanctuary city” status to allow for the deportation of migrants who commit violent crimes. A previous supporter of the sanctuary city policy, Adams appears to be amending it in response to rising crime rates and the strain placed on overwhelmed shelters in the city.
As the city deals with nearly 200,000 migrants who have arrived over the last 18 months, its sanctuary status prevents federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement from working together with local law enforcement to facilitate the deportation of violent offenders in the city who entered the country illegally.
Adams’ push for altering the city’s status has broken away from the view of his predecessors. Regarding the policies that limit the extent to which immigration enforcement officials can communicate and cooperate with local agencies, Adams has sought to empower local agencies to work together with the ICE to deport migrants guilty of violent or serious offenses. Current laws prohibit the city from working with the ICE if a foreign national is charged with a crime but not convicted.
Adams commented in late February 2023 that if migrants commit violent acts, the city should be able to turn them over to the ICE for deportation. The mayor has already criticized the federal government over the barriers migrants face when seeking work in the city. Adams also claimed that New York was performing well in its accommodation of migrants in shelters, despite the strain, and that tents are not seen in New York as they are in some other sanctuary cities. At the town hall meeting, Chief of Patrol John Chell of the New York Police Department stated that law enforcement officials had seized 50,000 illegal bikes, scooters, and cars in the city. Chell claimed the NYPD had repeatedly heard concerns from local residents about the illegal and stolen vehicles being used to carry out crimes.
Kenneth Genalo, the director of ICE’s field office in New York, agrees that the sanctuary city policies hinder the ICE’s work in the city. Genalo commented that the policies result in them having to search for offenders within the community rather than the confines of jail cells. Republicans praised the mayor’s comments, such as City Councilman Joe Borelli, who called the mayor’s shift in position a welcome change.
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