New Jersey’s dispute with the Trump administration over immigration enforcement moved into federal court this week, after the Justice Department filed a lawsuit in Trenton challenging a state executive order issued Feb. 11 by Gov. Mikie Sherrill. The complaint targets restrictions that, according to the federal government, limit how federal immigration agents can carry out arrests on state property and constrain where enforcement-related activities can be staged.
In the lawsuit filed Monday, the Justice Department argued that the order prohibits federal immigration agents from making arrests in nonpublic areas of state property, including correctional facilities and courthouses. The filing also challenged provisions barring the use of state property as a staging or processing area for immigration enforcement, framing the state action as an attempt to interfere with federal law enforcement efforts.
The complaint said Sherrill “insists on harboring criminal offenders from federal law enforcement,” and it accused her of attempting to obstruct federal authorities and thwart President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. The lawsuit also said the executive order “poses an intolerable obstacle” to immigration enforcement and “directly regulates and discriminates” against the federal government.
Asked about the lawsuit Tuesday, Sherrill pointed to what she said should be the federal focus, telling reporters: “What I think the federal government needs to be focused on right now, instead of attacking states like New Jersey working to keep people safe, is actually training their ICE agents.”
New Jersey’s response came from acting attorney general Jennifer Davenport, who said the Trump administration was pursuing the case as a waste of resources. Davenport said the federal government was “wasting its resources on a pointless legal challenge,” and she said New Jersey will fight it while “continue to ensure the safety of our state’s immigrant communities.”
The Trenton lawsuit is part of what the Justice Department has described as its pushback against state and local limits on immigration enforcement. Last year, the Trump administration sued Minnesota and Colorado as well as cities including New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Denver over so-called sanctuary laws, which the lawsuits targeted for restricting cooperation between police and immigration authorities.
Last May, the Justice Department sued four New Jersey cities—Newark, Jersey City, Paterson and Hoboken—over similar policies, and that case is pending.