ALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) — On December 18, a selection of five New York Democrats joined a seven-state coalition for a press conference on limiting cooperation with federal immigration operations. They pushed a suite of bills focused on civil rights, the rule of law, and what they called secret police tactics from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Democratic State Senator Patricia Fahy’s Mandating End of Lawless Tactics or MELT Act, S8462/A8908, would prevent law enforcement officers from wearing masks or disguises while working with the public. Officers would have to show their faces and name badges and be identifiable. Still, they’d be able to wear medical N95 masks or gear for fires and water rescues, and SWAT teams could still use protective safety gear on their faces during high-risk missions. An officer who breaks the law would face a misdemeanor.
In the clip below, Fahy talks about the impact of masked agents on public trust:
“The idea of federal agents acting like secret police or paramilitary units abducting people off our streets in broad daylight has been destroying that trust,” she said.
The “Protect Our Schools Act,” S4735B/A5373A, would shield students and teachers from immigration arrests on school grounds by making them off-limits unless ICE has a judicial warrant. That means districts and charter schools would be able to let officers in to apprehend or question anyone about immigration status if a judge finds probable cause.
ICE tends to rely on administrative warrants not subject to judicial review. Superintendents have to have a lawyer review whether they have valid court orders signed by a judge, preventing security guards or staff from making snap decisions at the door based on interactions with agents who are trying to get in.
Under the bill, if ICE were to present a judicial warrant and an arrest happens on campus, the school would have to immediately notify the student’s parents. The law would also prevent schools from spending any money or staff time to help with federal immigration enforcement.
Here, Democratic State Senator Shelley Mayer outlines why schools should be off limits to ICE:
S4121/A8139 would protect New Yorkers from civil arrests within 1,000 feet of sensitive locations—hospitals, churches, schools, food banks, domestic violence shelters, and the offices of elected officials—without a judicial warrant. Anyone unlawfully arrested at such a location could sue for damages and legal fees.
Democratic Assemblymember Micah Lasher argued that neighbors should feel safe going to a doctor or reporting a crime without fearing they might disappear into the shadows.
Democratic State Senator Zellnor Myrie flagged his New York Civil Rights Act, or S8500A/A9076A. It would let people sue in state court if a federal, state, or local government worker violates their constitutional rights. It’s also supposed to prevent officials from manipulating the federal court system to block such a lawsuit. The bill would let victims seek monetary damages for emotional distress or pain and suffering caused by the officer. If they win, the government would also be on the hook for their legal fees.
“The rights that we hold near and dear, the rights that have held this republic together mostly for the past two and a half centuries, mean nothing if there are no remedies to vindicate those rights when they are violated,” Myrie said.
Lasher carries a similar bill, S8504/A9092, to hold anyone working for the government liable if they violate a New Yorker’s Constitutional rights. It lets judges award damages or issue court orders to officials to stop behaving illegally.
In this video, Myrie explains why he thinks we have to use state-level legal tactics:
Democratic State Senator Andrew Gounardes talked about his New York for All Act, S2235A/A3506A. It would stop local police and state workers from using tax dollars or property to help ICE with civil enforcement. Nor could officers ask about a person’s citizenship or where they came from, unless required by law requires for some public benefit.
The bill would require police to get written consent in multiple languages before letting federal agents interview someone in their custody. It also prevents local jails from holding anyone past their release date just because ICE requested a detainer.
“Anything short of that standard just breeds significant distrust between immigrant communities and the police and local law enforcement, who are sworn to protect and defend them,” Gounardes said. He describes the “New York for All” plan in the video below:
According to Gounardes, most undocumented New Yorkers have lived in the country for a decade or more and are taxpayers and small business owners who contribute to their neighborhoods.
Citing a 400% increase in ICE arrests in the last year, Fahy also referenced two more bills related to immigration enforcement. One, the RADAR Act or A9376, would build a state-level, public ICE dashboard logging arrests. The other, S7960/A8188 or the SAFE AIR Act, targets private businesses that help the feds move people around without a valid order from a judge. The bill would specifically block New York from offering $170 million in fuel tax exemptions to such airlines, like Avelo.
“Public safety starts with public trust,” Fahy said, adding that taxpayer dollars shouldn’t subsidize private sector businesses that are “violating due process protection.”
Reached for comment on December 23, Republican Assemblymember Robert Smullen generally opposed each of these bills. He argued that they don’t address the concerns of communities upstate, like his Assembly District 118 that includes Herkimer, Gloversville, Long Lake, and Old Forge.
“These bill aren’t necessary for community trust in the areas I represent,” Smullen said. “In the areas that I represent, there is no lack of trust in law enforcement. The law enforcement system is very smooth and works very well in our areas.”
He said that in Democrat-controlled cities and downstate, law enforcement officers need to wear masks to prevent people from finding their private information and harassing them. Smullen also pointed out that the state can’t tell officers to ignore the federal laws that let them wear tactical gear.
Democratic lawmakers from California, Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia all joined the call to promote ICE reform legislation in their respective states.