In a significant win for the Trump agenda, the city of Louisville, Kentucky, will begin complying with the Trump administration’s 48-hour immigration detainer requests and, in exchange, the federal government will drop Louisville from its “sanctuary city” list.
On Tuesday, Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg (D) announced the shift in policy.
“I have been assured by the U.S. Department of Justice that, if we reinstate the 48-hour detainers for inmates who’ve been arrested for crimes, Louisville will be taken off the federal sanctuary city list,” Greenberg said in remarks on Tuesday.
“Accordingly, Metro Corrections will begin honoring 48-hour federal detainers as soon as practical because the stakes are too high,” he continued. “In turn, Louisville will no longer be considered a ‘sanctuary city’ by the federal government.”
Under the new directive, the mayor said, the Louisville Metro Department of Corrections (LMDC) will notify the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) at least 48 hours before an inmate with an immigration detainer is scheduled to be released from custody.
Greenberg said the city was at risk of losing out on “hundreds of millions of dollars in federal grants” with the “sanctuary city” designation. Those funds provide food, rental assistance and medical care to “our most vulnerable residents,” he said, adding, “I will not risk hurting them either.”
The Louisville Mayor said he decided to comply with the federal government’s request after discussions “with leaders within our immigrant community,” who expressed concerns about remaining on the government’s “sanctuary city” list, which is comprised of localities the Trump administration says impede enforcement of federal immigration policies.
“I believe we will best protect our law-abiding immigrant community and our entire city by focusing the Trump Administration’s immigration enforcement actions on the few inmates in our jail who have been arrested for committing crimes and are subject to deportation,” Greenberg added.
Attorney General Pam Bondi praised Louisville for complying with the federal government’s demands.
“In a major victory for the Department of Justice, the city of Louisville is dropping its sanctuary city policies as a result of a strong written warning from my office,” Bondi wrote in a post on the social platform X on Tuesday.
“This should set an example to other cities. Instead of forcing us to sue you — which we will, without hesitation — follow the law, get rid of sanctuary policies, and work with us to fix the illegal immigration crisis.”
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