New York’s Crazy “Green Light” Law

This has not been a good year for New York. The state was caught flat-footed by the COVID-19 pandemic, then the governor ordered nursing homes to accept people with the infection, resulting in thousands of unnecessary deaths.  It looks as if New York City will suffer the longest and most restrictive lockdown in the country, killing off about half of its businesses.  The subways have turned into homeless shelters, endangering those who must ride or work in them.  The no-bail law which took effect in January has flooded the city with criminals and shootings, auto theft, and commercial burglaries are all increasing. When the lockdown is finally lifted, law-abiding New Yorkers will become victims to increased robberies and assaults by criminals that the governor was concerned might get sick. Add to this hot mess, the new “Green Light Law” enacted in April.  The new law makes it a felony for any DMV employee or New York cop to share information about illegal aliens given driver’s licenses with federal immigration agents. Adam Shaw of Fox News reports on why this creates a serious law enforcement problem.

The acting head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) noted that federal agents are working in New York to not only apprehend illegal immigrants but to stop gangs and drug smuggling and other illegal activity. Now when agents look to make a stop, they aren’t able to get the information they need to assess how dangerous the situation they’re going into may be and whether they are dealing with a regular driver, a gang member, or worse. Furthermore, when working with police officers, those officers can’t share that information with their federal counterparts. “It sends a very dangerous message and the message it sends is the politicians in the state of New York are more concerned about illegal aliens having driver’s licenses than the law enforcement that are putting their lives on the line every single day to keep their communities safe from being able to do their jobs as effectively as possible,” he said. Criminals, and particularly illegal alien members of violent gangs, will benefit from this law.