DOJ escalates legal battle against illegal immigration with new lawsuit against 4 NJ sanctuary cities

05/26/2025 / By Ramon Tomey

The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit against four New Jersey cities (Newark, Jersey City, Paterson, Hoboken) for obstructing federal immigration enforcement, accusing them of violating the Constitution’s supremacy clause.
Acting Assistant AG Yaakov Roth called the cities’ policies a “frontal assault on federal laws,” arguing they endanger public safety and hinder cooperation with ICE. The DOJ seeks injunctions to stop sanctuary measures like blocking ICE access to jails.
The targeted mayors, including Newark’s Ras Baraka, denounced the lawsuit, defending sanctuary policies as fostering trust with immigrant communities and citing crime reductions. Hoboken’s mayor accused the federal government of “lawlessness.”
The lawsuit reflects ongoing tensions between the Trump administration and progressive jurisdictions resisting ICE cooperation. It follows protests, including arrests at an ICE facility, which the DOJ framed as prioritizing politics over safety.
Sanctuary policies remain contentious, with critics linking them to crimes like the murder of Laken Riley, while supporters argue they protect immigrants and community-police relations. The lawsuit aligns with broader efforts to force compliance through courts, potentially reshaping federal-local power dynamics.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has intensified its crackdown on sanctuary cities for allegedly obstructing federal immigration enforcement, zeroing in on four such examples in New Jersey through a lawsuit.

The DOJ’s lawsuit filed Thursday, May 22, named officials in four cities in the Garden State – Newark, Jersey City, Paterson and Hoboken – as defendants. It accused local officials, including the mayors of these cities, of violating the Constitution’s supremacy clause by adopting policies that actively thwart efforts to detain and deport illegal immigrants.

DOJ Acting Assistant Attorney General Yaakov Roth condemned the four cities’ policies as a “frontal assault on federal immigration laws” that endanger both law enforcement and communities. “Even where local law enforcement wants to help the U.S. deal with the nation’s immigration crisis, these policies impede them,” he stated in the complaint.

The lawsuit seeks injunctions to halt the sanctuary measures, which include barring Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents access to jails and prohibiting local police from sharing detainee information. Roth’s actions won’t be the last, as Attorney General Pam Bondi vowed further litigation. “This Justice Department does not tolerate obstruction,” she declared.

The move signals a renewed confrontation between the second Trump administration and progressive jurisdictions that have resisted cooperation with ICE. It also reignites a debate over public safety and federal authority.

Sanctuary city mayors decry DOJ lawsuit against them

Meanwhile, the mayors of the four sanctuary cities sued by the Justice Department denounced the legal action. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka dismissed the suit as “absurd,” insisting his city’s policies bolster trust between immigrants and police.

“We refuse to turn Newark into an arm of federal immigration enforcement,” Baraka said. He cited a 61 percent drop in homicides in the city as proof that the sanctuary city approach works. (Related: Homicide rates in sanctuary city Denver drop by 58%, thanks to ICE crime crackdown.)

The other mayors named as defendants – Hoboken’s Ravi Bhalla, Paterson’s Andre Sayegh and Jersey City’s Steven Fulop – have also spoken out against the lawsuit. Bhalla accused Washington of “lawlessness,” while Fulop asserted his policies reflect “values that protect families.”

The DOJ’s legal offensive follows a volatile May 9 protest at Newark’s Delaney Hall ICE facility, where Baraka and Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-NJ) were arrested during a demonstration against the center’s reopening.

While charges against Baraka were dropped, McIver faces federal counts for allegedly assaulting an officer – a case that has drawn scrutiny from a judge who called the mayor’s arrest a “worrisome misstep.” The Justice Department, however, framed the incident as evidence of local leaders prioritizing “political showmanship” over safety.

Sanctuary policies have been a flashpoint since President Donald Trump’s first term, when he signed an executive order withholding federal grants from non-compliant jurisdictions. Though blocked in 2018, the policy was revived in 2020 and Trump has pledged to eliminate sanctuary cities entirely if reelected.

The DOJ’s lawsuit mirrors actions against New York, Illinois and Colorado – underscoring a broader strategy to force compliance through the courts. The outcome could redefine the balance of power between federal and local governments, but the Trump administration remains adamant in its quest to make America safe again.

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Watch attorney Mehek Cooke calling out New Jersey Democrats over the May 9 protest at the ICE detention facility in Newark.

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