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New York Attorney General Letitia James has joined 20 other attorneys general in the United States in suing the Trump administration to protect services for Caribbean and other immigrants.
James told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) on Wednesday that the lawsuit seeks to block Trump’s Department of Justice (DOJ) from illegally conditioning federal funding for crime victims on states’ cooperation with Trump’s mass deportation efforts.
The New York Attorney General said the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) provides more than a billion dollars in grants to states each year to support survivors of crime with services such as medical care, counseling, shelter, and compensation for lost wages.
She said the funds also enable victims and their families to fully participate in the criminal justice system in the wake of a crime.
“Now, DOJ is forcing states to choose between abandoning public safety policies that protect all New Yorkers – including immigrant communities – and forfeiting the lifesaving funding that millions of victims rely on,” James said.
“The federal government is attempting to use crime victim funds as a bargaining chip to force states into doing its bidding on immigration enforcement,” said Attorney General James. “These grants were created to help survivors heal and recover, and we will fight to ensure they continue to serve that purpose.
“New Yorkers deserve a justice system that puts their safety first,” she added. “We will not be bullied into abandoning any of our residents.”
The New York Attorney General noted that the US Congress enacted VOCA more than 40 years ago to address the neglect of crime victims in the criminal justice system.
Funded entirely by fines and penalties from federal criminal cases, she said VOCA grants support compensation programs and direct assistance for survivors, including advocacy services, crisis counseling, sexual assault forensic exams, funeral and burial costs, and emergency shelter.
James said VOCA has been critical in improving the treatment of victims of serious crimes by providing them with the assistance, support, and services necessary to aid their recovery after the trauma of a criminal act and to help them navigate the justice system.
She said states use these funds to assist about 10 million victims each year.
In 2025, nearly US$1.4 billion in VOCA funds are available for states, James said.
Under DOJ’s new immigration-related conditions, James said VOCA funding would be cut off to any state or subgrantee that refuses to give the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) unfettered access to facilities, provide advance notice of individuals’ release dates, or honor all civil immigration enforcement requests.
“These requirements directly conflict with policies that New York and many other states have adopted to ensure victims and witnesses can report crimes without fear of deportation,” she said.
Attorney General James and the coalition argue that losing VOCA funds would devastate the network of victim services programs that states have built over decades.
Without this funding, they say states would be forced to scale back or shut down compensation programmes that cover medical bills, funeral costs, and lost wages for survivors, as well as assistance programmes that provide counseling, emergency shelter, crisis hotlines, and legal support.
“The sudden loss of these resources would disrupt services for millions of survivors nationwide, leaving many without access to the help they need to recover from violence and trauma, and undermining public safety in communities across the country,” the attorneys general argue.
NEW YORK, Aug. 21, CMC
English (US) ·