Trump loses court fight over NYC Sanctuary Laws as judge rejects key argument
WASHINGTON, DC: A federal court dismissed the Trump administration’s lawsuit against New York City's laws that limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement, demanding that it be blocked.
The Trump administration brought its first major lawsuit targeting sanctuary jurisdiction policies in February 2025 against Illinois and Cook County, followed by a wave of similar federal lawsuits against cities like Los Angeles and New York City in July 2025.
Why the judge threw out Trump's lawsuit
A federal judge dismissed the Trump administration's lawsuit against New York City's sanctuary laws on Thursday, October 15, saying the government lacked a valid basis to sue.
During the hearing, US District Judge Ramon Reyes in Brooklyn said the city’s law restricts police from arresting immigrants at the request of federal immigration authorities.
“The federal government came to court seeking to force New York City to turn its public servants into deportation agents and divert our resources toward carrying out ICE’s cruel agenda,” said New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani in a written statement following the ruling. “Today, they lost.”
“Our local laws make New York City safer. They allow us to focus our resources on protecting and serving our communities and ensuring that every New Yorker can turn to their City government without fear that asking for help will make them a target for deportation,” the mayor said in his statement.
Trump administration argued law violates supremacy clause
The lawsuit was filed in July 2025 in a federal District Court in Brooklyn, wherein the Trump administration argued that New York City’s law violates the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause.
The lawsuit claimed the clause gives precedence to federal laws over state laws.
Rejecting those arguments, Reyes declared that the federal government cannot force local governments to assist with immigration enforcement, Reuters reported.
He also upheld the city's limits on sharing immigrants' release dates, whereabouts and other custody information, because federal law does not require local governments to share it.
The ruling comes a week after an ICE officer shot a man in New York City in the Marble Hill neighborhood.
The Department of Homeland Security said the 28-year-old man had entered the US illegally and had a previous conviction for grand larceny. He had also been arrested multiple times for assault, robbery and weapons possession.
Following the incident, Mamdani, in a social media post, called it “an incredibly serious situation.”
