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The mayor of Louisville, Kentucky, informed the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday that he is shifting the city’s more restrictive policy on federal immigration detainers after the government warned it would sue over it.
Mayor Craig Greenberg, a Democrat, wrote in a letter obtained by Fox News Digital that the policy change was partly to avoid being targeted as a “sanctuary” city, a term used to describe jurisdictions with policies at odds with federal immigration enforcement.
“My understanding is that, by returning to our pre-2017 practices and again honoring 48-hour detainers, thereby functionally extending the notice period to DHS from 5-12 hours to 48 hours, Louisville will no longer be considered a sanctuary jurisdiction and, as a result, will no longer be vulnerable to the negative consequences of this designation,” Greenberg wrote to Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate. “The city will, therefore, adjust its detainer policy to avoid litigation over DOJ’s allegations of federal preemption.”
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Then-Louisville Democratic mayoral candidate Craig Greenberg speaks during a news conference in Louisville, Kentucky, on Monday, Feb. 14, 2022. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
The mayor’s reversal comes after the DOJ warned in a letter last month that Louisville’s detainer policy hindered the Trump administration’s ability to crack down on immigration there. The DOJ told Greenberg non-compliant states and cities have faced legal action and freezes on federal funding.
READ GREENBERG’S LETTER BELOW. APP USERS: CLICK HERE
Detainer policies are one of the most common reasons that cities become designated as sanctuaries for illegal immigrants.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) uses detainer forms to notify jails that federal authorities have identified a possible illegal immigrant in local custody that ICE wants to detain. Sanctuary jurisdictions have policies in place to ignore those notices.
In the case of Louisville, the Louisville Metro Department of Corrections was not honoring the 48-hour period ICE requested to hold suspects, thereby releasing the suspects from custody before ICE could arrest them.
The revelation of Louisville’s policy shift comes after Attorney General Pam Bondi mentioned Tuesday morning in an X post that the city was “dropping its sanctuary city policies,” though she did not mention details.
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Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks to reporters outside the White House on Wednesday, May 7, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
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“This should set an example to other cities,” Bondi said. “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.”
The DOJ has also brought immigration-related lawsuits in New York, Chicago, Colorado and elsewhere, though judges have not weighed in on the merits of the government’s arguments at this stage of litigation.