U.S. Dept. of Justice sues Jersey City & Hoboken in sanctuary city crackdown

The U.S. Department of Justice is suing Jersey City and Hoboken in an effort to crackdown on sanctuary cities, claiming they are in violation of federal law. By John Heinis/Hudson County View

The three-count lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Newark yesterday, also names the City of Newark, the City of Paterson, and all four of city’s mayors as defendants.

“Newark, Jersey City, Paterson, and Hoboken are proud ‘sanctuary cities.’ They have all adopted policies for the clear object of making it harder for the United States to enforce federal immigration law. These efforts to shield illegal aliens within the Garden State are unlawful,” the lawsuit contends.

“Among much else, these cities (along with their elected officials, the “Defendants”) deny federal immigration agents access to illegal aliens in local custody; restrict local officers’ ability to hand over illegal aliens to federal agents; and bar otherwise willing local officers from providing mission-critical information to federal immigration authorities.”

Bloomberg first reported on the case yesterday.

The federal court filing is consistent with what President Donald Trump’s (R) administration has been doing across various states since he was sworn in for a second term, making it a campaign pledge to deport the more than 10 million undocumented immigrants in the US.

“Recent events have proven that these New Jersey officials care more about political showmanship than the safety of their communities,” U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement.

“As I have made clear, this Justice Department does not tolerate local officials in sanctuary cities obstructing immigration enforcement: there is more litigation to come.”

Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, a Democratic candidate for governor who signed a sanctuary city executive order in February 2017, mocked MAGA in a post on X where he also predicted that they would prevail in court.

“Jersey City gets sued for being a sanctuary city — I guess MAGA ran out of conspiracy theories for the week. Here is the truth: Jersey City’s policies protect families, reflect our values and have led to record low crime rates. As governor, I won’t be bullied. We’ll fight this — and win.”

Less than a year later in January 2018, Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla signed an executive order  declaring the Mile Square to be “a fair and welcoming city” as his first act as the city’s chief elected official.

Seeking a state Assembly seat in the 32nd Legislative District where he has portrayed himself as a fierce foil to Trump, Bhalla said in a lengthy statement that Hoboken is ready to fight this.

“Hoboken is a city that has been, and continues to be, built by immigrants. These immigrants are our neighbors, parents of our children’s classmates, employees of our schools, and local businesses owners. Our city’s resources will not be used to harass or detain these valued community members who we see every day in our schools, public buildings, places of worship, and who contribute constructively to our city and obey our laws,” he declared.

“Hoboken is a community that prides itself on its vibrancy, its cultural diversity, and its inclusivity, and we will continue to stand together as a community for what is fair and just. The City of Hoboken will vigorously work to defend our rights, have our day in court, and defeat the Trump Administration’s lawlessness. To be clear: we will not back down.”

The lawsuit was filed shortly after Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, another Democratic candidate for governor, had his trespassing charges dropped after a highly publicized arrest by ICE agents during a visit at Delany Hall.

While Acting U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba, a former personal attorney for Trump, dismissed the case against Baraka (a federal judge chided her office for filing the charges in the first place), U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-10) is now facing assault charges.