Suffolk County has announced plans to appeal a jury’s award of $112 million to nearly 700 immigrants who were determined to have been unlawfully detained by the county’s sheriff’s office. The award follows a class-action lawsuit that highlighted violations of the immigrants’ rights under the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
According to Michael Martino, a spokesperson for Suffolk County, the county disagrees with the jury’s decision. The compensation will be distributed among 674 immigrants who experienced unlawful detention over a span exceeding four years. The jury’s ruling came after a federal judge found that the sheriff’s office on Long Island had violated the constitutional rights of these individuals by detaining them beyond their scheduled release times.
Legal Violations and Jury Findings
The judge’s earlier ruling, issued in January, confirmed that the sheriff’s office had breached not only Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable seizures but also due process rights. The jury determined that the office failed to provide the immigrants with a chance to contest their extended detentions.
Andrew Case, an attorney with the advocacy group LatinoJustice PRLDEF, remarked, “A jury of ordinary New Yorkers recognized the harm that unlawful detention causes and recognized the dignity and pain of our clients.” He emphasized that the jury’s compensation amount reflects a recognition of the humanity and dignity of those affected, equating their experiences to those of lawful citizens.
According to court documents, the sheriff’s office continued to detain immigrants even after its legal authority had lapsed and, in some situations, held them despite their bail being paid. These prolonged detentions were often executed in response to ICE detainers, which request local authorities to hold individuals for federal immigration enforcement.
Settlement Context and Future Steps
The compensation will benefit immigrants who were detained from July 18, 2014, to November 15, 2018, a period during which the sheriff’s office operated under these controversial policies. This ruling comes on the heels of a similar settlement in New York City last year, where the city agreed to pay up to $92.5 million to resolve claims regarding the unlawful detention of over 20,000 immigrants from 1997 to 2012.
While the New York City case faced challenges in identifying eligible claimants, Case believes that locating the individuals entitled to compensation in Suffolk County should be more straightforward. As the county prepares for its appeal, the focus remains on ensuring that those affected receive the compensation awarded to them by the jury.
The case highlights ongoing concerns regarding the treatment of immigrants and the responsibilities of local authorities in adhering to constitutional protections. As the appeal process unfolds, it will likely draw further attention to the broader implications of immigration enforcement practices across the United States.
