Erin Lanahan 
On February 24th, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the State of New Jersey and New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill, alleging her recent Executive Order interferes with the federal government’s enforcement of its immigration laws. Governor Sherrill’s Executive Order took effect on February 11th, barring federal agents, such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, from conducting business in non-public areas of state property, such as using it as a staging or processing area for immigration enforcement. Here’s what we know about the lawsuit from the Trump Administration and how Governor Mikie Sherrill is responding.
The Lawsuit
The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced it filed a lawsuit against Governor Mikie Sherrill and the State of New Jersey in an online press release.
The lawsuit centers on Governor Sherrill’s February 11th Executive Order, which prohibits federal agents, like ICE agents, from conducting arrests of criminal illegal aliens at nonpublic areas of state property, such as state correctional facilities. The DOJ claims New Jersey’s sanctuary policies are illegal under federal law. It also claims the State’s refusal to cooperate with federal agents would result in the release of dangerous criminals who would be subject to removal, including “illegal aliens convicted of aggravated assault, burglary, and drug and human trafficking.”
“Federal agents are risking their lives to keep New Jersey citizens safe, and yet New Jersey’s leaders are enacting policies designed to obstruct and endanger law enforcement,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi shared online. “States may not deliberately interfere with our efforts to remove illegal aliens and arrest criminals — New Jersey’s sanctuary policies will not stand.”
Governor Sherrill addressed the lawsuit on Tuesday, February 24th, during an unrelated press conference. “I think what the federal government needs to be focused on right now, instead of attacking states like New Jersey working to keep people safe is actually training their ICE agents with some modicum of training, like any law enforcement officer in the state of New Jersey would have, so they can operate better and more safely,” Governor Sherrill shared, per POLITICO.
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New Jersey’s acting attorney general, Jennifer Davenport, said the Trump administration was “wasting its resources on a pointless legal challenge.” Davenport told NBC News New Jersey will fight the lawsuit and “continue to ensure the safety of our state’s immigrant communities.”
The lawsuit is part of Attorney General Bondi’s initiative to identify state and local laws, policies, and practices that violate federal immigration laws or block federal immigration operations. The legal action is the latest in a series of lawsuits brought by the Civil Division targeting illegal sanctuary city policies across the United States, including in New York, Minnesota, and Los Angeles, California. In May of 2025, the Trump Administration sued four New Jersey cities, Newark, Jersey City, Paterson, and Hoboken, over similar policies. The case is still pending.
Background On The Executive Order
Governor Sherrill signed Executive Order 12 into effect on February 11th, 2026. The executive order bans federal immigration officers from entering, accessing, or using nonpublic areas of State property for their operations, such as making arrests, unless authorized by a judicial warrant. The executive order follows several high-profile ICE operations across New Jersey in recent weeks, which sparked protests and calls for local protections.
This bars ICE agents, federal Customs and Border Protection, any similar agency or successor agency, or any other federal law enforcement agency tasked with civil immigration enforcement or working with ICE or Customs and Border Protection, from conducting activities on state property. It remains unclear how frequently federal agents previously used state property for immigration enforcement operations.
This doesn’t outright ban federal immigration officers from accessing state property, but they are no longer allowed to conduct operations at these spaces. State property includes facilities, premises, parcels, and portions that are owned, operated, leased, or controlled by New Jersey Executive Branch departments and agencies. This includes but is not limited to residential medical facilities, child care centers, government offices, and state university dorms, according to the Governor’s office.
Legal experts note that while states cannot block federal immigration enforcement outright, they are generally permitted to control access to state-owned property.
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A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security previously told POLITICO that Governor Sherrill’s order is “legally illiterate” and would not help public safety. “How does this serve the people of New Jersey? The biggest losers are the people these politicians were elected to serve,” DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin told POLITICO.
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