A federal judge the Justice Department’s lawsuit against Rochester, New York, over its decades-old sanctuary city policies, rejecting every argument President Donald Trump’s attorneys threw at the city.
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The lawsuit targeted Rochester’s sanctuary policies dating back to 1986, which limit how much city police cooperate with federal immigration officials. Under the policy, local police officers in Rochester are prohibited from asking about immigration status or detaining people solely based on suspected immigration violations. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or Customs and Border Protection agents often ask city officials to do this on their behalf.
DOJ argued the policies violated the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause in three separate ways: preempting federal law, discriminating against the federal government, and illegally regulating federal agents.
But senior U.S. District Judge Frank Geraci Jr., an appointee of former President Barack Obama, shot down every one of these arguments.
On preemption, he ruled the federal statutes DOJ relied on only regulate government entities, not private citizens, meaning they can’t legally preempt local law at all. On claims that Rochester discriminated against the federal government, Geraci found DOJ never identified any other law enforcement agency getting more favorable treatment than ICE or CBP, a basic requirement for that kind of claim. And on allegations the city was illegally regulating federal agents, the judge concluded Rochester’s rules simply dictate how its own employees behave, without directly controlling what federal immigration officers can do.
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Geraci dismissed the entire case with prejudice, meaning DOJ is barred from refiling.
The ruling adds Rochester to a growing list of cities and states, including Illinois and Minnesota, where courts have rejected nearly identical DOJ arguments against sanctuary policies. Rochester Mayor Malik Evans has publicly defended the city’s stance after a March incident involving federal officers.
Rochester is located in Western New York on the shores of Lake Ontario — which Trump recently decreed would hereby be called “Lake America” in an executive order meant to retaliate against Canada’s opposition to his trade policies.
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