Following his second meeting with President Trump’s Border Czar Tom Homan on Thursday, Mayor Eric Adams announced the city would once again allow federal immigration authorities to operate inside the Rikers Island jail complex.
In an emailed statement on Feb. 13, hours after his roughly 90-minute meeting with Homan, the mayor said he plans to issue an executive order reestablishing federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) presence at the island jail complex. He said ICE agents will specifically work with the Department of Correction intelligence bureau in its criminal investigations to root out “violent criminals and gangs.”
“Today, I met with ‘Border Czar’ Tom Homan and local federal law enforcement officials to discuss how we can work together to remove violent migrant gangs from our city,” Adams said. “We also discussed ways to embed more NYPD detectives into federal task forces, focusing on these violent gangs and criminal activity. … Keeping the 8.3 million New Yorkers who call our city home safe is — and will always remain — our administration’s North Star.”
The bombshell revelation that ICE would once again be able to operate on Rikers, for the first time in 10 years (the city closed its office there in 2015), came just days after Trump’s Justice Department moved to dismiss Adams’ federal corruption case. The move will likely invite lawsuits from legal services providers and immigrant advocates.
Before the meeting, Adams’ team said he would speak to Homan about the $80 million in migrant crisis aid that the feds clawed back from the city on Wednesday. Adams, in a Pix11 interview following the meeting, said he was “not happy about” the clawback and that he will have the city’s coproration counsel explore how to recoup those funds.
Adams’ meeting with Homan comes just days after Trump’s Justice Department asked Manhattan federal prosecutors to drop his criminal corruption case in a bombshell memo, partially so he could focus on implementing Trump’s immigration crackdown in the city. The DOJ moved to dismiss the charges without prejudice, giving it the ability to resurrect Adams’ case at any time, which his critics say amounts to him being at Trump’s mercy.
It also follows Adams’ administration’s mixed messaging on how municipal workers should handle federal immigration authorities requesting access to city property and information, which is restricted under the city’s sanctuary laws.
Zach Ahmad, a senior policy counsel with the New York Civil Liberties Union, charged the mayor’s move is a clear violation of the city’s sanctuary laws, which bar the city from working with federal immigration authorities in many instances.
“ICE’s presence on Rikers serves no legitimate purpose, and opens the door to unlawful collusion between local law enforcement and federal immigration officials in violation of our city’s well-established sanctuary protections,” Ahmad said.
Adams’ meeting with Homan took place at 26 Federal Plaza, in the Department of Homeland Security’s office. Adams arrived in a black unmarked vehicle and did not take reporters’ questions immediately before or after the session.
‘Significant first step’
One group that will likely be happy with Adams’ move is the City Council’s Republican and conservative Democratic members. A group of them met with Homan right before Adams, revealing that he told them Adams had not delivered on promises he made to crack down on migrants accused of committing crimes during their last meeting in December.
Council Member Robert Holden (D-Queens) said in a statement following the meeting that the facility reopening is a “significant first step.”
“But more must be done to show that Mayor Adams truly prioritizes public safety,” Holden said. “While this is progress, we must go further to ensure New York City is no longer a safe haven for criminals.”
The lawmaker said that Homan told the group he would hold Adams “accountable” for promises he previously made.
“He just said that he’s going to hold the mayor responsible for things he said prior, the last meeting they had, that he didn’t deliver on,” Holden told reporters outside Federal Plaza.
Holden did not specify which promises Homan alleged Adams had failed to keep. He added that the border czar conveyed to Adams that he would face unspecified consequences for not complying.
Also present at the meeting were Council Members Joann Ariola (R-Queens), Vickie Paladino (R-Queens), and Kristy Marmorato (R-Bronx).
The council members claimed that Adams has the authority to suspend the city’s sanctuary laws. However, City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams said that this is something that Adams does not have the legal authority to do.
‘An arm and a pawn’
At the same time, Adams’ meeting with Homan rankled many of his fellow Democrats, including his primary challengers.
Speaker Adams said there are “serious concerns” about the mayor complying with the city’s sanctuary laws based on his “rhetoric and actions” and the DOJ memo requesting his charges get dismissed.
Former city Comptroller Scott Stringer, who is running against Adams, charged that the timing of Adams’ meeting with Homan was “no coincidence.”
“[Homan] is here to collect and it’s of a tremendous consequence to New Yorkers and in particular, immigrant communities, who are the backbone of this city,” Stringer said during a press conference held at the same time as Adams’ meeting with Homan.
“The President sees the mayor right now as an arm and a pawn,” Stringer added. “He looks at this opportunity to use New York City as the proving ground for mass deportations.”
Murad Awawdeh, president and CEO of the New York Immigration Coalition, charged that Adams has done little to prevent the Trump administration from unleashing federal immigration authorities across the city.
“The Adams administration needs to do more to comply with our sanctuary local laws and policies,” Awawdeh said in a statement. “Now is the time that he should stand with the City Council in condemning these unwarranted attacks on New York City’s values and our families.”
