Liberal NY federal court tags Suffolk County with $60 million judgment for assisting ICE, exempts ICE and DHS from judgment

SUFFOLK COUNTY, NY- WABC reports that a federal court in New York has ruled in favor of two plaintiffs who filed a class action lawsuit. The plaintiffs complained that Suffolk County violated their Fourth Amendment rights and state law by detaining hundreds of illegal aliens past their release dates at the request of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 

In a January 2 decision, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York awarded the plaintiffs $60 million in damages and fees. However, it exempted ICE and the Department of Homeland Security from owing any of that money, which leaves it squarely on Suffolk County's shoulders. 

“We are now being sued for detaining them at the request of the federal government,” Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine said. County legislators joined him in announcing the plan to appeal the court’s decision. 

“Now, to hold us liable because we cooperated with the federal government is nothing short of ridiculous,” Romaine said. 

“To now penalize the county using taxpayers’ dollars for following the law as it was interpreted at this time is unjustifiable,” Sheriff Errol Toulon Jr. said. Toulon oversees inmates at the Suffolk County jails and was not in charge in 2016 when the county started cooperating with ICE and DHS. He was elected at the end of 2018. 

“When New York State determined that we could no longer honor ICE detainers later that year, we immediately complied, ceasing the practice following the court’s decisions,” Toulon said. 

Suffolk County attorney Chris Clayton says the county should get immunity just as ICE and DHS did. 

“We think that the court failed to recognize some of the arguments that we’ve already made,” Clayton said. 

“We will fight this all the way.. We are appealing this decision,” Romaine said. 

If the county is forced to pay $60 million, Romaine says it will either have to bond the money or take it out of its operating budget. Either way, taxpayers will be responsible for it. 

Court decisions such as this could significantly impact efforts by the incoming Trump administration to gain the support of state, county, and local law enforcement authorities, especially in so-called “sanctuary” jurisdictions with liberal judges, to assist with his plans to implement a mass deportation program.