The complaints allege that both counties continue to operate ICE 287(g) agreements.
Source: N.M. Department of Justice
Photos: Courtesy
Santa Fe, NM — Attorney General Raúl Torrez today announced that the New Mexico Department of Justice has filed lawsuits against Torrance County and Curry County seeking declaratory and injunctive relief over the counties’ refusal to comply with the Immigrant Safety Act, which took effect May 20, 2026.
“Local officials take an oath to uphold the law, all of it, not just the parts they agree with,” said Attorney General Raúl Torrez. “The Legislature enacted the Immigrant Safety Act after careful deliberation, the Governor signed it, and it is now the law of New Mexico. No county sheriff has the authority to nullify a statute simply because he disagrees with it. That is not how our constitutional system works, and this office will not allow it to stand.”
The complaints allege that both counties continue to operate ICE 287(g) agreements. That federal program deputizes local sheriff’s personnel to carry out civil immigration enforcement, including executing immigration arrest and removal warrants on ICE’s behalf. Unlike criminal warrants, these administrative documents are not reviewed by a neutral magistrate, require no probable cause of any crime, and carry no judicial oversight.
The lawsuits allege that participation in these agreements imposes serious costs on local communities. Deputies assigned to federal civil immigration enforcement are unavailable for the criminal investigations and emergency responses that are the core mission of local law enforcement. The agreements also deter immigrant residents from reporting crimes or cooperating with police, placing entire communities beyond the protection of local law enforcement. They further expose counties to significant civil rights liability, as immigration-status enforcement creates well-documented risks of racial profiling and unconstitutional stops.
The Immigrant Safety Act reflects a clear policy judgment by the Legislature and Governor that these harms outweigh any claimed benefit. County governments have no authority to substitute their own judgment for that determination.
“These counties have decided their policy preferences override the democratic process. They are wrong about the law, wrong about their authority, and wrong to think this office will look the other way. State law is not optional, least of all for the officials who took an oath to uphold it.”
The Attorney General is asking the court to declare that both counties must immediately terminate their ICE agreements, prohibit the counties from exercising or modifying those agreements pending judgment, and declare that local officials lack authority to arrest or detain individuals solely on the basis of civil immigration status or administrative immigration warrants.
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