New York’s new anti-ICE law has run headfirst into a small‑town sheriff who says he will not stop helping federal agents take dangerous illegal offenders off the street.
Story Snapshot
- New York passed a law forcing sheriffs to end formal cooperation agreements with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) by August 25, 2026.
- Madison County Sheriff Todd Hood was ordered to unwind his ICE partnership but has pledged to keep working with ICE on public safety.
- Governor Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James created a new state office to police even “informal” help to ICE.
- The showdown highlights a growing clash between blue-state sanctuary policies and local lawmen focused on crime and border security.
New York Moves to Cut Local Ties with ICE
New York lawmakers approved the Local Cops, Local Crimes Act this spring, folding it into the state budget and locking in major limits on cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. The law bans local law enforcement from entering or renewing formal “287(g)” agreements, which allow trained local officers to perform certain immigration enforcement duties under Immigration and Customs Enforcement supervision in exchange for federal support. It also blocks the use of county jails to hold people only for civil immigration violations, even when federal officials request it.
Governor Kathy Hochul’s office has framed the change as a way to keep local police “focused on local crimes” and to stop what she calls federal “co-opting” of local resources. The administration pushed the bill after clashes with the Trump administration over immigration raids, and it now groups New York with several other deep-blue states that prohibit 287(g) partnerships. Supporters say the law will reassure illegal immigrants and mixed-status families who fear any contact with local law enforcement, even when they are victims or witnesses.
State Creates New Enforcement Office, Targets 12 Sheriffs
To enforce the new limits, the state created the Office of Immigrant Trust inside the Attorney General’s office, giving it a direct mission to hunt down and stop cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In July, that office sent letters to twelve sheriff’s offices and police agencies that still had 287(g) or similar agreements, ordering them to end the partnerships and report back on their compliance steps by mid-August. The letters warned that both formal contracts and “informal” help to Immigration and Customs Enforcement are now treated as violations of state law.
Attorney General Letitia James has said that if counties do not unwind their agreements by the August 25 deadline, the state will haul them into civil court to force compliance, rather than bringing criminal charges. Her office has already collected complaints about local agencies allowing Immigration and Customs Enforcement to use county facilities, parking lots, or staff time to support operations. New guidance to police departments stresses that local law enforcement agencies may not hold, detain, or transfer people for civil immigration enforcement based only on an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer or warrant that lacks a judge’s signature.
Sheriff Todd Hood Pushes Back, Citing Public Safety
Madison County Sheriff Todd Hood received one of the warning letters, which told him to shut down his department’s cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement in civil immigration cases within one month. Reporting from central New York describes Hood as one of several sheriffs who say they will comply with the narrow letter of the law by ending the written contract, but still continue to work with federal immigration agents in other ways that they view as legal and necessary for public safety. Hood has publicly pledged to keep helping Immigration and Customs Enforcement remove criminal offenders from his county.
Sheriffs like Hood argue that the state is tying their hands at a time when border crossers and repeat offenders are moving north from failed sanctuary cities. They point out that Immigration and Customs Enforcement cooperation often focuses on people already in local jails for crimes, not random sweeps of law-abiding residents. Critics of the law say forcing sheriffs to ignore federal detainer requests or refuse to share basic information about offenders turns New York into a magnet for criminal illegal immigrants and shifts the burden to already-stretched local deputies.
Legal Tension Between State Power and Local Control
New York’s Attorney General insists that compliance with Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainers has always been voluntary, and that the state can direct how local agencies use taxpayer resources. The new act doubles down on that view by telling law enforcement they “shall not perform or support” the functions of a federal civil immigration officer, whether through formal 287(g) deals, informal arrangements, or any other program. From Albany’s perspective, sheriffs are simply being reminded that they answer to state law and must stop helping federal agents with civil immigration work.
New York Orders Sheriff Todd Hood to Cut Off ICE. He Refuses. | David Manney, PJ Media
Madison County Sheriff Todd Hood isn't confused about what New York wants from him. Attorney General Letitia James sent his office a formal warning on July 24, directing it to end its… pic.twitter.com/abrhILqejE
— Owen Gregorian (@OwenGregorian) August 2, 2026
Sheriffs in Madison County and other upstate and suburban areas see it differently. They are elected by local voters, not appointed by the governor, and they view cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement as part of their duty to protect residents from repeat offenders and gang members. Some county leaders have already vowed to defy or test the law in court, arguing that New York is blocking lawful, congressionally authorized cooperation agreements between local and federal agencies and putting ideology over safety.
What Comes Next for New Yorkers
As the August 25 cutoff nears, both sides are digging in. The Hochul administration has promised to “enforce its law” against any state or local agency that continues to perform civil immigration enforcement work for the federal government. Sheriffs in several counties, including Madison, are signaling they will keep working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement within what they view as the law’s remaining gray areas, while preparing for possible civil lawsuits from the state. That fight will likely determine how far Albany can go in insulating illegal immigrants from federal enforcement inside New York’s borders.
For families in conservative and rural parts of the state, the standoff is about more than paperwork. It goes to basic questions: who decides how local deputies use their time, and whose safety counts when state politicians prioritize sanctuary-style policies. As President Trump’s administration ramps up federal immigration enforcement nationwide, blue-state governments like New York are racing the other way. The clash between Sheriff Todd Hood and New York’s political leadership shows that the next front in the border battle is not only at the Rio Grande, but in county jails and sheriff’s offices across the country.
Sources:
pjmedia.com, governor.ny.gov, spectrumlocalnews.com, nyic.org, jurist.org
