Op-Ed: Hochul’s Claim That NY Is 'Not a Sanctuary State' is the Lie of the Year
By Steve Levy
Governor Kathy Hochul is lying when she falsely claims that New York is not a sanctuary state.
The state has refused to work with the federal government on 16,000 cases to deport criminal illegal aliens within our midst.
But that’s what a sanctuary city does: it gives sanctuary to people here illegally, even those who are violent criminals and threats to our communities.
We are talking about 16,000 specific instances of illegal aliens with criminal records who could’ve been deported, but, instead, were placed back on the streets as per the directives of Democrats throughout the state.
Every crime committed by these 16,000 individuals in New York were preventable — that includes felony assault, drug dealing, rape and murder.
How in the world can any elected official justify keeping these people here, rather than working with the federal authorities to deport them?
Hochul continues to spout the lie that, while New York law enforcement will not cooperate with the feds in deporting the typical illegal immigrant, they will do so with criminals. However, that statement was proven to be a lie when the feds reported that there are over 16,000 such criminal aliens whom blue state and city officials let back out on the street after their criminal processing, rather than alerting the federal authorities to remove them.
The latest ICE data reveals that, from January 20, 2025, to October 8, 2026, there were 16,070 detainers that were not honored by the state.
There are 52,503 total criminal charges and convictions associated with the detainers that were not honored in New York. These crimes include:
Homicides: 131
Kidnappings: 132
Sexual offenses: 1,017
DUIs: 1,561
Burglaries: 1,631
Robberies: 1,776
Weapons offenses: 2,198
Dangerous drugs: 4,324
Assaults: 9,502
Some recent illegal alien crimes in the sanctuary state include:
1) In June, ICE lodged a detainer for Aureliano Melendez, an illegal alien from El Salvador, after he was arrested for raping a 16-year-old girl in Huntington, New York.
2) In April, the New York City Department of Corrections refused to honor an ICE detainer for Roman Ceron, an illegal alien from Mexico, who was charged with murder and arson in Queens County, New York.
3) In March, ICE arrested Bryan Tasiguano, an illegal alien from Ecuador and Latin Kings gang member, who had been released by New York sanctuary politicians despite being charged with assault.
4) In March, ICE lodged a detainer for Bairon Posada, a four-times deported illegal alien from Honduras, after he was arrested for shoving two bystanders, including an 83-year-old Air Force veteran, onto subway tracks in New York City.
5) In January, ICE arrested Rafael Rubio, an illegal alien from Venezuela, who was working as a New York City Council employee despite having a criminal history that includes an arrest for assault.
6) In January, ICE arrested Geraldo Miguel, an illegal alien from Mexico, after he had been released by New York sanctuary politicians despite having a criminal history that includes arrests for strangulation, rape, sexual assault, burglary, grand larceny, and drug possession.
7) In April 2025, ICE lodged a detainer for Felix Jeronimo, an illegal alien from Mexico, after he was arrested for raping and robbing a corpse on a New York City subway. Jeronimo was sentenced in June 2026 to five years in prison.
We now know Sanctuary Democrats say one thing in public, but do another behind the scenes.
It is the underlying policy of the Democratic Party to gum up the works on deportations, even for criminal illegal aliens, so that the feds are forced to encounter huge delays and utilize tremendous resources to deport just about anyone. The fewer illegal aliens deported, the more who remain that can be counted in the census to bolster Democratic districts that otherwise might be drawn out of existence when a new census is developed and redistricting occurs.
New York Congresswoman Yvette Clark (D-Brooklyn) acknowledged this when she admitted that there was a need for more illegal immigrants in her district to make sure that her congressional seat was not eliminated.
And then, of course, there is a hope that, once they take power, the Democrats will provide mass amnesty and have these illegal immigrants voting. They have little doubt that the illegal immigrants, once given the franchise, will vote for the Democrats who let them in and allowed them to stay.
So, for the short-term political power that the sanctuary city will give the Democrats, they are willing to sacrifice the long-term welfare of their nation.
Hochul should be ashamed of the sanctuary policy that she endorses, and ashamed further for lying about it.
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Steve Levy is President of Common Sense Strategies, a political consulting firm. He served as Suffolk County Executive, as a NYS Assemblyman, and host of the “On the Right Side Podcast.” He is the author of “Solutions to America’s Problems” and “Bias in the Media.” www.SteveLevy.info, steve@commonsensestrategies.com.