DOJ Sues New Mexico and Albuquerque Over Immigrant Protections, Setting Up Supreme Court Showdown

The Trump administration’s Department of Justice is taking aim at New Mexico and Albuquerque’s bold immigrant protections, filing a sprawling lawsuit that threatens to upend local efforts to shield undocumented residents from deportation.

On Friday, the DOJ sued the state, the city, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Attorney General Raul Torrez, and Mayor Tim Keller over the Immigrant Safety Act and Albuquerque’s Safer Community Places Ordinance. The federal government claims these laws “undermine federal immigration enforcement” and violate the Supremacy Clause, which establishes federal law as supreme.

The Immigrant Safety Act, a major win for New Mexico Democrats, bans counties from cooperating with federal immigration detention contracts and ends the state’s agreement with the Otero County Processing Center, a key detention facility. Albuquerque’s ordinance goes further, requiring businesses to alert workers within 24 hours if ICE agents show up on-site.

Mayor Keller fired back, insisting Albuquerque is “an immigrant-friendly city” that refuses to ask for papers or share information with ICE. “We are going to defend our city,” he said.

Legal experts expect this clash to drag on and eventually reach the Supreme Court. KOAT’s John Day called it a “really interesting legal issue” that will test the limits of state versus federal authority on immigration policy.

The DOJ is pushing for a quick hearing and wants to block these laws before they take effect on May 20. The lawsuit also warns that ending the Otero County contract will force ICE to relocate detainees, complicating the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement plans.

This lawsuit is the latest front in the ongoing war between sanctuary policies and federal immigration crackdowns. As blue states push back against Trump’s hardline agenda, the courts are becoming the battleground where the future of immigrant protections will be decided.