Judge rules Suffolk County violated immigrants' rights; could pay up to $60M in damages
Suffolk County Executive Edward Romaine, center, with other Suffolk officials, discusses on Wednesday a recent federal court decision which found the county violated the constitutional rights of hundreds of immigrants who were held in jail on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainers. Credit: Newsday / Howard Schnapp
A federal judge ruled this month that Suffolk County violated the constitutional rights of hundreds of immigrants who were held in jail on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainers between 2016 and 2018.
County officials vowed to appeal the decision this week, saying they had been acting under federal guidance and should not be held liable for a payout they estimate could be as much as $60 million.
Jose L. Perez, deputy general counsel of LatinoJustice PRLDEF, a Manhattan-based advocacy group that filed the suit along with a law firm, called the judge’s decision a "resounding total victory."
"They violated the law," he said. "They are going to be held accountable."
County Executive Edward P. Romaine, flanked by several Republican legislators at a news conference this week, decried the decision as a burden on county taxpayers.
"We detained these people at the request of the federal government and now to hold us liable because we cooperated with the federal government is nothing short of ridiculous," said Romaine, who took office last year. "We will fight this all the way."
It's unclear when the Romaine administration will file its appeal.
The lawsuit centered on the cooperation between Suffolk’s jail under former Sheriff Vincent DeMarco and ICE, the agency in charge of removing immigrants who are in the country illegally. The Suffolk County sheriff honored ICE’s detainer requests, which are administrative forms that the agency uses requesting the inmates be held for 48 hours until they can be apprehended.
In a separate 2018 case, a court ruled the practice unlawful, at which point the Suffolk sheriff ceased.
The original complaint was filed in 2017 on behalf of Joaquin Orellana Castaneda, an immigrant from Guatemala, who had been stopped by Suffolk police for a traffic violation and booked on a DWI-related arrest. He was held on an ICE detainer for two days after his bail was posted on the local charge.
The lawsuit was given class action status, ultimately including 650 people, according to court filings.
County Attorney Christopher Clayton said the county "honored lawfully issued, undisputedly issued, detainers under the color of federal authority and we think that should provide us with the appropriate immunity."
In the Jan. 2 decision, U.S. District Judge William F. Kuntz II dismissed the county’s defense that the sheriff’s office had simply complied with a federal government policy and instead ruled it was a municipal policy.
"The power did not flow from the federal government," the judge wrote.
Perez said courts have consistently ruled that ICE detainers are not a mandate or judicial warrant and said the county and sheriff volunteered to enforce them.
"A number of other federal courts around the country have made in essence similar rulings that, again, detainers are not binding," he said. "They offer no independent legal authority to hold somebody in custody."
County officials argued the federal agencies had immunity in the case, which should extend to the county. Perez disputed that and said the plaintiffs voluntarily dropped the claims against the federal agencies since the "bulk of our claims were against the county and the sheriff."
Perez said they are open to settlement discussions but declined to provide a potential figure. The county also declined to comment on potential settlement negotiations.
With Matthew Chayes
A federal judge ruled this month that Suffolk County violated the constitutional rights of hundreds of immigrants who were held in jail on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainers between 2016 and 2018.
County officials vowed to appeal the decision this week, saying they had been acting under federal guidance and should not be held liable for a payout they estimate could be as much as $60 million.
Jose L. Perez, deputy general counsel of LatinoJustice PRLDEF, a Manhattan-based advocacy group that filed the suit along with a law firm, called the judge’s decision a "resounding total victory."
"They violated the law," he said. "They are going to be held accountable."
County Executive Edward P. Romaine, flanked by several Republican legislators at a news conference this week, decried the decision as a burden on county taxpayers.
"We detained these people at the request of the federal government and now to hold us liable because we cooperated with the federal government is nothing short of ridiculous," said Romaine, who took office last year. "We will fight this all the way."
It's unclear when the Romaine administration will file its appeal.
The lawsuit centered on the cooperation between Suffolk’s jail under former Sheriff Vincent DeMarco and ICE, the agency in charge of removing immigrants who are in the country illegally. The Suffolk County sheriff honored ICE’s detainer requests, which are administrative forms that the agency uses requesting the inmates be held for 48 hours until they can be apprehended.
In a separate 2018 case, a court ruled the practice unlawful, at which point the Suffolk sheriff ceased.
The original complaint was filed in 2017 on behalf of Joaquin Orellana Castaneda, an immigrant from Guatemala, who had been stopped by Suffolk police for a traffic violation and booked on a DWI-related arrest. He was held on an ICE detainer for two days after his bail was posted on the local charge.
The lawsuit was given class action status, ultimately including 650 people, according to court filings.
County Attorney Christopher Clayton said the county "honored lawfully issued, undisputedly issued, detainers under the color of federal authority and we think that should provide us with the appropriate immunity."
In the Jan. 2 decision, U.S. District Judge William F. Kuntz II dismissed the county’s defense that the sheriff’s office had simply complied with a federal government policy and instead ruled it was a municipal policy.
"The power did not flow from the federal government," the judge wrote.
Perez said courts have consistently ruled that ICE detainers are not a mandate or judicial warrant and said the county and sheriff volunteered to enforce them.
"A number of other federal courts around the country have made in essence similar rulings that, again, detainers are not binding," he said. "They offer no independent legal authority to hold somebody in custody."
County officials argued the federal agencies had immunity in the case, which should extend to the county. Perez disputed that and said the plaintiffs voluntarily dropped the claims against the federal agencies since the "bulk of our claims were against the county and the sheriff."
Perez said they are open to settlement discussions but declined to provide a potential figure. The county also declined to comment on potential settlement negotiations.
With Matthew Chayes
Joe Werkmeister covers the towns of Southampton, East Hampton and Shelter Island. He is a graduate of St. Bonaventure University and previously worked as the editor of two North Fork community newspapers.
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