NYC Mayor Eric Adams appeals order blocking ICE from setting up on Rikers Island jail

Chris Sommerfeldt, New York Daily News on May 5, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

NEW YORK — Attorneys for Mayor Eric Adams are appealing a court decision that’s temporarily blocking his administration from taking any steps to let federal immigration authorities operate on Rikers Island.

In papers filed Monday with the appellate division of Manhattan Supreme Court, attorneys representing Adams, First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro and the city Department of Correction asked for the expunging of a temporary restraining order preventing the administration from taking any steps to let ICE agents on Rikers at least through a May 29 hearing.

The April 25 restraining order, which also prohibits the administration from engaging in negotiations with the feds about letting them on Rikers, was issued by Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Mary Rosado in response to a lawsuit brought by the City Council.

The suit alleges the Adams administration’s executive order to allow ICE on Rikers is the “poisonous fruit” of a “corrupt” deal the mayor entered into with President Trump whereby the mayor’s federal corruption indictment was dropped in exchange for a commitment to assist in Trump’s effort to targeted undocumented New Yorkers for “mass deportations.”

According to the Council’s suit, the order violated local ethics law that bar city officials from taking official actions to benefit themselves. On a more technical note, the suit also charges the order itself isn’t valid because it was signed by Mastro instead of the mayor.

The Monday filing from the lawyers representing Mastro and Adams dismissed the Council’s technical argument, alleging the order “complies with the city administrative code.”

The attorneys also wrote in the court papers that the Council’s attorneys “unequivocally failed to demonstrate the imminent, concrete harm” that would warrant the type of temporary restraining order issued by Rosado.

Spokespeople for the mayor didn’t immediately return requests for comment on the filing. Reps for Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, who’s spearheading the lawsuit, didn’t immediately return messages seeking comment, either.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents used to maintain an office on Rikers where they coordinated deportation actions until 2014, when the city strengthened local sanctuary laws to bar the feds from the island. The overwhelming majority of inmates held on Rikers are awaiting trial and haven’t been convicted of any crimes.

Critics of the mayor fear his administration’s push to let ICE back on Rikers will result in immigrant New Yorkers accused of minor offenses being swept up in Trump’s hard-line immigration crackdown. They have pointed in particular to the Trump administration’s willingness to bend the rules, and even outright defy court orders, as part of its aggressive efforts to target undocumented immigrants for deportations.

Mastro and Adams’ office have countered that the executive order would only allow the feds to engage in criminal enforcement on the island, as opposed to civil deportation proceedings. Mastro has said there would be “consequences” if ICE engaged in civil enforcement anyway, though he hasn’t detailed what those might be.

_____