By Chris Wade | The Center Square contributor

(The Center Square) — The Justice Department is taking Democratic New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill to court over her efforts to limit the state’s cooperation with federal immigration crackdowns.

A lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court Tuesday, alleges that an executive order signed by Sherrill that barred Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from using state-owned property as staging areas for operations violates federal laws and accuses her administration of “harboring criminal offenders” from law enforcement. 

“Governor Mikie Sherill aims to intentionally obstruct federal law enforcement and celebrates thwarting the constitutional obligation of the President of the United States to take care that federal immigration law be faithfully executed,” the DOJ wrote in the 21-page complaint. “Such blatant disregard for federal laws that have been on the books for over three decades is not merely a political statement, but is instead deliberate action that jeopardizes the public safety of all Americans.” 

President Donald J. Trump welcomed Angel Families to the White House for an emotional ceremony honoring American lives tragically taken by criminal illegal aliens who never should have been in our country. Paying solemn tribute to the second anniversary of Laken Riley’s murder, President Trump signed a Proclamation designating February 22 as National Angel Family Day — a day of remembrance for victims and their grieving loved ones devastated by the consequences of open border policies.

With America’s border now the most secure in history, the Trump Administration remains unwavering in its commitment to remove dangerous criminal illegal aliens from our communities, ensure accountability, and make sure not one more American family has to endure this pain.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

A PROCLAMATION

On National Angel Family Day, we remember and honor the thousands of American lives stolen from us by criminal illegal aliens and the deadly drugs they bring across our borders.  We stand with the Angel Families, many of whom continue to be left without justice.  And we recommit to carrying out the largest mass-deportation effort in our Nation’s history, getting the worst of the worst out of our country, and putting a stop to the violence targeting the brave men and women of law enforcement.

Every year, thousands of American citizens are victimized by dangerous and criminal illegal aliens, often sent here by their home countries to get them out of their prisons or off their own streets.  After returning to office, I received a letter from a New York City police officer that filled the First Lady and me with tremendous sadness and anger.  He wrote to the White House about one of the most unconscionable of these derelictions in recent memory — the murder of Laken Riley.

In 2022, a Venezuelan man named Jose Ibarra was caught crossing the Southern Border illegally and released into our country by the Biden Administration.  A year later, this NYPD officer personally witnessed Ibarra endanger a child on the streets of New York and arrested him.  The officer was shocked to learn that, shortly thereafter, New York City — a so-called “sanctuary” jurisdiction — released Ibarra back into the community before Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) could issue a detainer for his removal.  Ibarra then fled to Georgia and, just a few months later, brutally murdered a beautiful young American named Laken Riley.