NYCLU Condemns Hochul’s New Immigration Proposal

The proposal now gives police unfettered discretion over determining who is turned over to ICE

ALBANY – Today Governor Hochul announced a newly updated immigration proposal that would allow local and state police to collude with federal immigration authorities if they believe they have probable cause to hold an individual for a possible crime. In response, the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) issued the following statement, attributable to Senior Policy Counsel Zach Ahmad:

“Governor Hochul’s latest proposal still doesn’t recognize the flashing danger posed by Trump’s mass deportation machines. By giving police officers wide discretion to collude with ICE, the Governor would leave immigrant New Yorkers in danger.

“We know how easy it is for law enforcement to claim probable cause to detain someone. Relying on a probable cause standard means the Governor’s proposal will allow police to turn a person who is simply accused of a crime over to ICE – an inept, violent, and lawless agency. That means New York would be condoning and colluding in Trump’s policies of deporting New Yorkers based merely on officer discretion, without any semblance of due process.

“We know that ICE’s documented record of racial profiling and decades of longstanding police bias in this state mean that the Governor’s ‘solution’ will lead to more Black and Brown New Yorkers being disappeared into the unaccountable immigration legal system – and won’t make us safer.

“Governor Hochul, it’s time to stand up for our rights, our values and our people: pass New York For All, in its entirety, once and for all.”

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