The Trump administration is violating constitutional rights by conducting arrests in New York based solely on race and ethnicity, immigrants and advocacy groups say in a new lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleges the Department of Homeland Security violated the Fourth and Fifth Amendments and the Administrative Procedure Act by carrying out stops, sweeps, and arrests that were racially motivated and lacking individualized justification—practices plaintiffs say amount to a systemic departure from federal law and constitutional protections.
The complaint, filed Wednesday in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York, alleges that immigration officers implemented an enforcement strategy relying on aggressive arrest quotas and broad street operations that swept up individuals based largely on perceived Latino ethnicity.
It’s one of several similar lawsuits filed in various district courts as President Donald Trump’s administration carries out his aggressive deportation agenda.
A DHS spokesperson said in a statement that allegations of racial profiling are “false.”
The spokesperson added that immigration officers operate under federal authority and use “reasonable suspicion” and probable cause in line with constitutional standards.
Plaintiffs say the policy led to widespread “collateral arrests,” with 85% involving people “with no criminal history,” according to the complaint.
“Officers must not make interior immigration stops or arrests based on race or ethnicity,” the complaint states, adding that “even noncitizens must be treated equally as individuals, and not as members of racial, ethnic, or religious groups.”
The plaintiffs also challenge what they describe as a pattern of warrantless arrests that ignore statutory limits on immigration enforcement authority. Federal law requires officers to have probable cause that a person is unlawfully present and likely to flee before making a warrantless arrest, the complaint says.
The plaintiffs are represented by attorneys from Covington & Burling LLP; The Legal Aid Society; New York Civil Liberties Union Foundation; and Make the Road New York.
This case is Benitez v. Dept. of Homeland Security, E.D.N.Y., Docket No. 2:26-cv-02082, 4/8/26.
To contact the reporter on this story:
To contact the editor responsible for this story: