Activist Democrat Judge Temporarily Blocks Mayor Adams from Granting ICE Access to Rikers Island in Blow to Immigration Enforcement
New York State Supreme Court Judge Mary V. Rosado (Democrat) issued a temporary restraining order Monday blocking Mayor Eric Adams and his administration from moving forward with a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that would have allowed federal immigration agents access to Rikers Island – the city’s most notorious jail complex.
At the heart of the case is Executive Order No. 50, issued by Mayor Adams, which aimed to facilitate cooperation between the New York City Department of Correction and federal law enforcement, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The agreement was designed to identify and remove dangerous illegal aliens charged with violent crimes – including repeat offenders and gang members – from city custody and turn them over to federal authorities.
But that common-sense initiative has now been derailed by a politically motivated lawsuit filed by the New York City Council, which outrageously argues that allowing ICE to perform its lawful duties violates the city’s sanctuary policies.
According to the lawsuit, Adams allowed ICE back on Rikers in exchange for the DOJ dropping federal corruption charges filed against him last year.
According to the lawsuit reviewed by The Gateway Pundit:
Mayor Eric Adams, as part of a corrupt quid pro quo bargain to end the federal criminal case against him, promised to let United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) return to Rikers Island and set up an office.
The Trump Administration has repeatedly confirmed that they will use that office and ICE’s presence on Rikers to supercharge their mass deportation efforts.
To carry out this plan, on April 8, 2025, newly appointed First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro acting as proxy of Mayor Adams-issued Executive Order 50 to allow ICE back on Rikers Island.
Executive Order 50 and the actions leading up to and surrounding it are illegal, null, and void, and any steps to enforce it should be immediately halted by this Court.
In siding with the Council’s radical anti-enforcement stance, Judge Rosado temporarily barred Adams, First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro, and all city personnel from negotiating or implementing any deal with the federal government—effectively handcuffing law enforcement.
“Upon the foregoing documents, the Court issues the following interim order granting a temporary restraining order prohibiting Defendants Mayor Eric Adams, First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro, and the New York City Department of Correction, and any and all New York City government officials, officers, personnel and agencies from taking any steps towards negotiating, signing, or implementing any Memoranda of Understanding with the federal government regarding federal law enforcement presence on Department of Correction property,” Rosado wrote.
The Adams administration, in an effort to accommodate due process, agreed to postpone the agreement until a formal hearing scheduled for April 25.
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