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Governor Hochul Signs Legislation Protecting Undocumented Immigrants from Threats to Report Their Immigration Status

Governor Kathy Hochul today signed legislation (S.343-A/A.3412-A) classifying certain threats to report a person’s immigration standing as extortion or coercion less than New York legislation. Threats to report a person’s immigration position can at this time be taken care of as a crime in circumstances of labor trafficking and intercourse trafficking, but were not formerly handled as likely extortion or coercion offenses.

“New York is built on the hard perform and willpower of generations of immigrants, and we need to have to assist people who are hoping to develop better life for them selves and their households,” Governor Hochul said. “This laws will defend New Yorkers from bad actors who use extortion or coercion owing to their immigration standing, and make our state safer towards vile threats and intimidation.”

This monthly bill makes it possible for prosecutors to prosecute initiatives to blackmail an specific by threatening to cause deportation proceedings even when unrelated to labor or intercourse trafficking. Very similar actions have been enacted in California, Colorado, Maryland and Virginia, and this laws is primarily based off model laws advisable by The General public Leadership Institute titled “Stop Extortion of Immigrants Act.”

Senator Anna M. Kaplan mentioned, “For an undocumented immigrant who fled risk in their property country, remaining described to ICE can be a dying sentence, nevertheless unfortunately, significantly too quite a few men and women are ready to take benefit of our much more vulnerable neighbors by threatening to reveal their immigration standing in purchase to exploit them in some way. By enacting this prolonged-overdue measure, we’re updating the regulations on extortion and coercion to assure that immigrant New Yorkers are not remaining susceptible to such vile threats. I’m exceptionally grateful for Assemblymember Solages and her partnership in addressing this issue, and for Governor Hochul for ensuring that our communities are protected and protected.”
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Assemblymember Michaelle C. Solages said, “This laws breaks new ground in New York’s ongoing efforts to shield undocumented immigrants, who can be some of our state’s most vulnerable people. I thank Governor Hochul for signing this essential reform—which will guard undocumented New Yorkers from extortion and coercion—into regulation. Arbitrary threats of deportation are very harmful to New Yorkers seeking to feed their family members and give their young children a greater lifetime, and we stand with them, today and normally.”