The Legal Aid Society is condemning collusion between U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and New York City Department of Correction (DOC) officers to facilitate the deportation of incarcerated immigrants.

According to emails revealed at a recent City Council hearing, DOC employees coordinated with ICE on several occasions, despite clear policy prohibiting such communication.

“It is explicitly against the New York City Detainer Law and DOC’s own policy for City officials to cooperate with ICE to detain and deport immigrants,” reads a statement from Legal Aid. “When staff violate those policies with impunity, it propagates a culture of collusion and xenophobia.”

“Our clients and all immigrant New Yorkers have the right to live their lives without the constant fear that ICE is lurking in the shadows to trap them while they least expect it,” the statement continues. “New York City must live up to its promise of welcoming all immigrants and stop this police-to-deportation pipeline immediately by passing legislation proposed by the City Council to close loopholes in the detainer laws.”

“The DOC and ICE officers involved in these egregious emails must be held accountable,” the statement concludes. “We ask those entities to immediately inform the public of what disciplinary actions, if any, have been taken against the officers.”