A controversial new state law that creates criminal penalties for local law enforcement officers who do not fully cooperate with federal immigration investigations is set to go into effect next month, putting the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office in a legal quagmire.
For more than a decade, under a legal settlement in a federal civil rights case, the sheriff’s office, which runs the New Orleans jail, has maintained a policy that places tight restrictions on how its employees can interact with federal immigration authorities.
But beginning on Aug. 1, under Act 399 of 2025, Orleans Parish deputies who follow that policy could be charged with committing a felony and face up to 10 years in prison. On the other hand, if the sheriff’s office goes against the policy and obeys the new state law, it risks violating a longstanding federal court settlement…