Judge Blocks NYC From Busing Illegal Immigrants to Upstate County

Comes after Rockland County also obtained a court order blocking the transfer of illegal immigrants

New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends a news conference in New York on Oct. 11, 2022. (Mary Altaffer/AP Photo)

A New York Supreme Court judge has temporarily blocked New York City Mayor Eric Adams from busing illegal immigrants to Orange County, located in upstate New York.

Earlier this month, officials in two counties—Rockland and Orange—had made emergency declarations and denounced Adams over his plan to bus illegal immigrants from New York City to neighboring communities and provide the illegal immigrants “up to four months of temporary sheltering.”

The two counties also filed separate lawsuits to stop Adams from transferring the illegal immigrants, with Rockland County filing on May 9, and Orange County filing on May 12.

By May 11, Rockland had obtained a court order against New York City and Adams, temporarily prohibiting it from transferring some 340 migrants into Armoni Inn and Suites in Orangeburg.

Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus confirmed Tuesday the judge’s decision to bar New York City from sending over illegal immigrants.

“A State Supreme Court Judge today granted the County’s application for a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) which has stopped New York City Mayor Eric Adams for the time being from sending asylum seekers to Orange County,” he said in a written statement on Facebook.

He said in an accompanying video that New York City, “knowing that the case was under review” since the lawsuit was filed on May 12, had “tried to flood as many buses up here as possible” over the weekend before the judge issued her ruling.

Neuhaus said Adams had estimated that only around 60 illegal immigrants would be sent to stay in the county for about a month, but “that number [of illegal immigrants] went to 186; 110 are at the Crossroads Hotel, 76 are at the Ramada Inn.”

The two hotels are providing shelter to the illegal immigrants at the expense of taxpayers. They are located in the Town of Newburgh, in New York state’s Hudson River Valley region.

Details on Illegal Immigrants Required

Per the judge’s decision Tuesday, no more illegal immigrants may be sent to Orange County, which means the number of illegal immigrants either remains the same at 186 or decreases, according to Neuhaus.

The judge also ordered that New York City must provide county officials information on who the illegal immigrants being sent over are, Neuhaus said. He added the city had so far failed to provide any information on these illegal immigrants.

“That’s the biggest problem … we have no idea [about their] names, ages, status, where they are from. Were they vetted? We have zero information. We were not provided that.”

Neuhaus also shared that New York City was planning to send “upwards of seven buses” of illegal immigrants to Orange County, just moments before the judge’s ruling.

“One caveat on this whole thing—obviously the city and the hotel owners can appeal [the judge’s decision],” Neuhaus said, noting the situation is fluid.

In addition to seeking the restraining order, Orange County asked the court to immediately reverse the transfers and stop future ones. Attorneys for the county argued that Adams and the city have no legal authority to run a temporary shelter in the county, because the county lies outside the city boundary.

Orange County also filed another lawsuit against the two hotels in the county that are housing the illegal immigrants, for having violated the State of Emergency order that Neuhaus issued on May 8.

The state of emergency prohibits hotels, motels, and other short-term rentals in the county from housing illegal immigrants arranged by the New York City government.

Cara Ding contributed to this report.