New York City’s elected Democratic district attorneys have instructed prosecutors to pursue reduced or alternative charges that could help illegal immigrants avoid deportation, according to a House Judiciary Committee report shared with The Post.

The committee found versions of the practice across all five boroughs. The report detailed training materials, internal policies, office guidance and communications focused on limiting immigration consequences for defendants while resolving criminal cases.

In the Bronx, District Attorney Darcel Clark trains prosecutors “to conceal facts from the record of conviction” and “pursue alternative charges,” according to the GOP-controlled committee. The stated approach could allow noncitizens to avoid offenses that trigger deportation.

A 2019 Bronx guide to “immigration-conscious plea bargaining” addressed cases involving child sex crimes. Prosecutors were instructed to “[o]ffer something that does not have the child’s age as an element of the crime.”

Training materials also directed Bronx prosecutors handling weapons offenses to “[k]eep the firearm out of the record of conviction” and “[o]ffer something that does not specify a firearm.” In domestic violence cases, prosecutors were told to “[k]eep the domestic relationship out of the record of conviction.”

For stalking cases, the materials encouraged prosecutors to offer a charge that omitted “repeated instances or an intent to instill fear.” Republicans argue that such omissions can affect more than immigration proceedings because they may also keep relevant information from law enforcement.

Sanctuary DAs are treating illegal aliens better than American citizens!

In New York City, prosecutors are being told to let criminal illegal aliens, including pedophiles, off lightly so that @ICEgov has a harder time deporting them. Far too many times, innocent New Yorkers have been victimized by criminal illegal aliens and found their leaders taking the side of the criminals rather than the victims. Under the Trump administration, the American people will ALWAYS come first and we will relentlessly remove illegal aliens from New York, even while local officials REFUSE to honor thousands of detainers. — Homeland Security (@DHSgov) October 26, 2026

March 2023 training materials titled “Crimmigration” instructed Bronx prosecutors to, “[a]s appropriate,” “strive to ensure that a conviction for certain offenses does not lead to unintended and severe consequences such as deportation that can tear families apart and destabilize communities.”

Screenshots of the 2019 training showed prosecutors were urged to “Offer a Non-Deportable Offense.” The materials also suggested considering charges for “legally impossible” offenses because “[l]egally impossible crimes cannot serve as the basis for [immigration] removal proceedings” when appealed in the federal court system.

In Queens, District Attorney Melinda Katz instructed prosecutors to “exercise extreme caution” and “not get caught up in the label of [f]elonies, [m]isdemeanors” when dealing with illegal immigrants, the report said. Her office employs an “immigration specialist” who helps assistant district attorneys evaluate plea options.

A report authored by Katz’s office last year said the specialist assists prosecutors in framing resolutions that prevent unwanted immigration consequences. In 2020, the specialist helped secure reductions or dismissals involving 21 convictions, while Katz urged then Gov. Andrew Cuomo to issue pardons in six cases to prevent deportation.

A May 26 email obtained by the committee showed the policy at work. An assistant district attorney told an NYPD detective that the office had “basically made a [plea] deal which is ‘immigration safe,’” while noting that the defendant pleaded guilty to several crimes and served time behind bars.

The Brooklyn District Attorney’s office has sought an “immigration-neutral” resolution since 2017, according to the report. Staff members have been trained “to avoid disproportionate collateral consequence, such as deportation, while maintaining public safety.”

Prosecutors in Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez’s office may be instructed to offer “a plea for a lesser offense in light of the disproportionate immigration consequences a higher level offense may result in.” Staten Island District Attorney Michael McMahon also operates a unit dedicated to requesting that ICE delay deportations.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office told the committee that its previously expansive immigration policy is “outdated,” but acknowledged that prosecutors still consider citizenship status individually. A 2022 memo from Bragg directed prosecutors to “seek dispositions that avoid immigration consequences for all misdemeanors, and all felonies for which non-carceral outcomes are the presumptive outcome.”

New York City Council Member Joann Ariola challenged those priorities. “When did protecting a criminal’s immigration status become a part of a DA’s job description?” she asked, adding, “Our DA’s are entrusted with upholding the law and protecting the public. If that’s not their priority, then they’ve got it backwards.”

The report said the NYPD received nearly 10,000 detainer requests from Immigration and Customs Enforcement during the previous 12 months and honored none. The Department of Homeland Security also reported that authorities across New York state had ignored 16,070 detainer requests.

The report cited the murder of a Queens woman who was 92 years old by Guyanese migrant Reeaz Khan after a federal detainer was lodged against him in 2020. Katz’s office later secured a sentence of 22 years to life against Khan.

Katz initially rejected the committee’s May information request, arguing that state prosecutions were outside congressional oversight. She responded after Chairman Jim Jordan and subcommittee Chairman Tom McClintock sent another letter in August warning that they might issue a subpoena.

Representatives for the district attorney offices in Queens, the Bronx, Brooklyn, Staten Island, and Manhattan did not respond to requests for comment.

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