Although he originally positioned himself as a moderate Democrat promising a return to law and order following the disastrous tenure of Bill de Blasio, New York City Mayor Eric Adams now appears headed for a disgraceful end to his time in office.
Pam Bondi, head of President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice, filed a lawsuit today against Adams, along with other New York City officials and the city itself, over their alleged obstruction of law enforcement related to the city’s radical sanctuary city immigration policies.
"If New York's leaders won't step up to protect their citizens, we will," Bondi wrote in a Thursday X post.
The Department of Justice is suing New York City and Mayor Eric Adams for continuing to obstruct law enforcement with sanctuary city policies.
— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) July 24, 2025
If New York’s leaders won’t step up to protect their citizens, we will.
The lawsuit, filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, alleges that Adams and other New York City officials, have refused to honor ICE detainers, blocked communication and cooperation with federal immigration agents, and enforced sanctuary city policies that make it difficult for ICE to arrest and deport illegal aliens with criminal records.
The DOJ's complaint cites the recent instances of two illegal aliens ambushing an off-duty Customs and Border Protection officer while he sat in Fort Washington Park.
"They allegedly tried to rob the officer, shooting him in the face and the leg in the process. Both aliens entered the United States illegally and were repeatedly arrested for criminal behavior since. In fact, after an April 5, 2024, arrest for fourth-degree felony grand larceny and petit larceny, ICE placed an immigration detainer on one of the aliens," the lawsuit reads.
However, the New York City Department of Correction ignored the detainer and released the illegal alien back onto the streets.
"But for New York City’s sanctuary policies, this tragedy could have been avoided," the complaint adds, before citing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's remarks panning the move: “How many more lives will it take, how many more people have to be hurt and victimized before we have public safety be a number one priority in some of our largest cities?”
New York City's sanctuary city policies on immigration date back to 1989 when then-Mayor Ed Koch issued an executive order preventing city employees from disclosing information on immigration status with federal authorities, except under limited circumstances.
In 2011 and 2014, under then-Mayors Mike Bloomberg and Bill DiBlasio, the New York City Council expanded the policy, further restricting cooperation with federal immigration agencies, including limiting the Department of Correction and NYPD from honoring ICE detainer requests unless specific conditions were met.
The city once again expanded their sanctuary city policies in 2017 by prohibiting city agencies from using resources to assist in civil immigration enforcement.
READ MORE: Homan Puts Sanctuary Cities on Notice, Slams the Media Over Immigration Enforcement Coverage
New York: ICE Detainers Skyrocket, City Not Cooperating
Defendants in the lawsuit include the City of New York; Mayor Eric L. Adams; the New York City Council; Council Speaker Adrienne E. Adams; the New York City Department of Correction and its Commissioner, Lynelle Maginley-Liddie; the New York City Department of Probation and its Commissioner, Juanita N. Holmes; and the New York City Police Department, along with its Commissioner, Jessica S. Tisch.
Earlier in his time in office, Adams seemed to side with radical leftists on illegal immigration, expressing support for the city's sanctuary status. However, Adams changed his tune in 2024, expressing support for deporting illegal aliens accused of violent crimes.
Adams, who was indicted on five federal counts of bribery, conspiracy, wire fraud, and soliciting illegal campaign contributions from foreign nationals in September 2024, has appeared to further distance himself from his radical leftist counterparts in recent months in what appears to be an attempt to rebrand his political career.
On Apr. 3 of this year, Adams officially left the Democratic party and announced he would be seeking a second term in office as an independent candidate.
It remains to be seen how Adams’ independent strategy will play out, given New York City’s deep Democratic roots and the rise of Zohran Mamdani, a proud Democratic Socialist and the party’s latest rising star.
Adams played with fire by courting radical extremists and it seems as though he may have burned himself on the way out.
Editor’s Note: Democrat politicians and their radical supporters will do everything they can to interfere with and threaten ICE agents enforcing our immigration laws.
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