New York City under fire over sanctuary laws

>>The Justice Department on Thursday sued Mayor Eric Adams, claiming New York City is hindering the Trump administration's enforcement of immigration law, in an escalation of efforts to crack down on the country's largest sanctuary city.

- SANTUL NERKAR

In a 37-page lawsuit filed in US District Court in Brooklyn, the Trump administration said the city's policies had violated the supremacy clause of the constitution, which it said gives the administration "well-established, preeminent and preemptive authority to regulate immigration."

The lawsuit was the latest legal action by the Trump administration against so-called sanctuary jurisdictions, which limit cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities.

It comes after a similar lawsuit against Illinois and Chicago in February, shortly after President Donald Trump took office, and one against Los Angeles in June.

"New York City has long been at the vanguard of interfering with enforcing this country's immigration laws," the administration said in its suit.

"Its history as a sanctuary city dates back to 1989, and its efforts to thwart federal immigration enforcement have only intensified since."

Mr Adams, a Democrat, had for months aligned himself with Mr Trump on many immigration issues; the lawsuit indicated a fraying of that alliance.