Rockland lawmakers unveil new draft legislation to restrict county's communication with ICE
The bill's sponsors pulled the legislation from consideration at Tuesday evening's meeting of the county Legislature to add language contending it is not "sanctuary" community legislation.
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Rockland lawmakers shared revised draft legislation Wednesday that would restrict the county's cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.
If enacted, the Safety and Dignity For All Act would ban county deputies, probation officers and corrections officers from communicating with ICE agents about any certain person - unless the law requires it, the person is accused of a crime other than unlawful entry into the United States or if the person is a suspected terrorist.
Under the proposed law, all county employees would also have to deny any request from ICE to interview a person in custody unless ICE has a judicial warrant or the person wants to speak with ICE.
All county agencies would be directed to deny requests from ICE for help with immigration enforcement operations.
The legislation is modeled after Westchester County's Immigrant Protection Act of 2018.
The bill's sponsors pulled the legislation from consideration at Tuesday evening's meeting of the county Legislature to add language contending it is not "sanctuary" community legislation.
County Legislator Beth Davidson said her constituents, affected by recent events in Minneapolis, want to make sure the county has no part in any arrest of an immigrant who has not committed an offense other than being undocumented and illegally present in the United States.
"Judicial warrants will be required, but also honored, while following the law at every step to make sure that the folks ICE does apprehend are criminals, the folks that this presidential administration promised that that was who they were targeting, Davidson said Wednesday during an interview in Legislature's chamber.
Several hundred people showed up to the Rockland County government building Tuesday evening when the Legislature was about to set a date for a public hearing for the proposed law, but delayed it.
Opponents, including some law enforcement officers, said they worry the restrictions would hamper important federal investigations.
Rockland County Executive Ed Day, who has veto power, said the legislators left key stakeholders out of their process.
"The sponsors didn't even try to speak to any of the people in law enforcement in Rockland County when they instituted this bill," Day said Wednesday over the phone. "Any law the diminishes law enforcement's ability to do their job, I will never, ever support."
Rockland Sheriff Lou Falco was not immediately available for comment.
District Attorney Tom Walsh's office would be exempt from the restrictions, "but may exercise its discretion as it sees fit," the legislation read.
The Legislature's public safety committee will discuss the bill at a meeting next Tuesday.
Then at its Feb. 18 meeting, the full Legislature might vote to advance the bill to the public hearing stage.
