The New York county of Suffolk plans to appeal a multi-million-dollar verdict in favor of hundreds of immigrants who were found by a jury to be unlawfully detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Following a five-day trial in November, jurors awarded $112 million in damages to more than 670 immigrants. They found that Suffolk, the easternmost county in New York State, and its sheriff’s office unlawfully detained those immigrants between 2014-2018 based solely on detainers issued by ICE without showing probable cause.
The immigrants in question were them in jail after they were eligible for release so they could be transferred to federal immigration authorities. Jurors ruled the practice violated constitutional protections against unlawful detention and due process, resulting in the $112 million award. Civil rights advocates said the verdict carries major implications for how local governments may handle immigration detentions and further cooperate with federal authorities on immigration-based policies.
“There are too many variables involved to determine the effect that this verdict may have on the financial condition of the county at this time,” Mark Johnson, a spokesperson for the New York State Comptroller’s Office, told Military.com.
The county’s appeal was disclosed in filings to bond investors following the verdict.
Military.com reached out for comment to Suffolk County officials and the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office, as well as ICE and the Department of Homeland Security.
The verdict was eight years in the making. In 2017, the law firm Winston & Strawn and co-counsel LatinoJustice PRLDEF filed a lawsuit in the Eastern District of New York asserting that Suffolk County unlawfully refused, based solely on detainer requests issued by ICE, to release their clients from custody after the resolution of their criminal cases.
Verdict ‘Sends Message’
“In our system of justice, it is well known that jurors have historically used their verdict to send a message,” Efrén Olivares, vice president of litigation and legal strategy at the National Immigration Law Center, told Military.com. “A $112 million damages verdict against Suffolk County sends that message.”
Olivares said the case underscores a legal boundary that many local governments have crossed, that civil detainers are not judicially authorized criminal warrants and can lead to unjust and unlawful detentions.
Other state and local entities that unlawfully detain immigrants may pay a similar price for their unlawful complicity with the federal government, Olivares added.
Advocates say the ruling lands at a moment when cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration agencies remains under intense national scrutiny.
Immigration detention has increasingly intersected with the military community, including cases involving noncitizen service members and their families who have been caught in prolonged or disputed custody situations. It has prompted broader scrutiny from lawmakers and advocates concerned about due process and the depths of local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.
Civil Detainers Triggered the Suit
Federal courts have consistently ruled that detainers, such as those by ICE, are voluntary and do not carry the authority of a judge-signed warrant.
A federal judge previously found Suffolk County liable, leaving jurors to determine damages. Jurors unanimously found that the county had violated clients’ rights and ordered them to pay $75 million for its Fourth Amendment and New York Constitution violations and another $37 million for procedural due process violations, according to a press release from Winston & Strawn.
The combined $112 million award is nearly 100 times larger than the firm’s next highest pro bono award.
Civil rights advocates familiar with the case say the compensation is expected to be distributed to individual plaintiffs based on the duration and circumstances of their detention, rather than paid to the county or federal government.
Regional Financial Impact Unknown
Suffolk County officials face questions about how the verdict could affect budgets and taxpayers.
Mark Johnson said Suffolk County disclosed to bond investors that it intends to appeal the judgment, adding that the county is best positioned to explain how it plans to manage the potential liability.
Audited financial statements show Suffolk County reported $2.65 billion in general fund revenues for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2024. The county’s debt limit stands at $28.5 billion, with 3.59% of that limit exhausted. The comptroller’s Fiscal Stress Monitoring System last designated the county at a moderate level of fiscal stress for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2020.
There is no definitive timeline for the appeal process to reach conclusion.
Story Continues
Read the full article here