ICE expects more raids — NJ says 'we don't respond to threats' | nj1015.com
Wednesday, December 05, 2018
TRENTON — Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal's office says he's not responding to the possibility
of more raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the wake of the state's new guidelines to law enforcement when handling undocumented people.
The new rules introduced last week direct police officers not to inquire about a person's immigration status unless relevant to an investigation. The directive also bars departments from assisting ICE in civil immigration enforcement efforts and instructs county jails not to honor ICE detention requests that would keep suspects in custody longer than their scheduled release.
The rules also prohibit jails from notifying ICE about an inmate's release date unless that individual has been charged with a serious criminal offense.
“The New Jersey attorney general’s decision to further limit law enforcement’s ability to cooperate with ICE undermines public safety and hinders ICE from performing its federally mandated mission,” ICE Deputy Director Matthew Albence said Thursday.
The agency said there will likely be an increase in the number of "large arrests and worksite enforcement operations" because ICE believes they "no longer have the cooperation of the jails related to immigration enforcement."
"We don't respond to threats. We’re focused on protecting New Jersey’s residents from harm," Grewal spokesman Peter Aseltine said Monday.