Louisville ends sanctuary city status amid federal pressure and funding risks

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Louisville will no longer be considered a sanctuary city.

Metro will once again begin honoring 48-hour immigration detainers for inmates in local custody, Mayor Craig Greenberg announced Tuesday.

The move comes in response to a letter from the U.S. Department of Justice, which informed the city that its current practices violate federal law and identified Louisville as a "sanctuary city."

Mayor Greenberg said Metro Corrections will return to the pre-2017 practice of giving federal immigration officials 48 hours’ notice before certain undocumented inmates are released. Currently, that notice is given 5 to 12 hours in advance.

"This issue changes nothing with regards to LMPD policy or practice," Greenberg said. "LMPD is not involved in enforcing federal immigration policy. This is only about inmates who are arrested for crimes, are booked in our jail, and are subject to deportation notices."

Greenberg said the city’s existing process already involves fingerprinting every inmate and sharing that data with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. When a detainer is issued, Metro Corrections notifies DHS of the release. The reinstated 48-hour window aligns Louisville with standard practice used by the Kentucky Department of Corrections.

According to Greenberg, fewer than 100 inmates each year at the Louisville jail are affected by detainers.

The mayor said he made the decision after speaking with local immigrant leaders, who expressed concern about the risks of remaining on the federal sanctuary city list—including the potential for large-scale immigration raids.

"We do not want to see highly coordinated and often violent federal enforcement action here," Greenberg said. "Especially in workplaces, residential areas, schools, places of worship, parks, and other areas where law-abiding people gather."

Greenberg also cited financial risks, saying the city could lose “hundreds of millions of dollars in federal grants” if it remains classified as a sanctuary city.

"This change removes Louisville from that list," he said. "We will best protect our law-abiding immigrant community and our entire city by focusing the Trump Administration’s immigration enforcement actions on the few inmates in our jail who have been arrested for committing crimes and are subject to deportation."

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi pointed out the administration's win on X Tuesday.

"In a major victory for the Department of Justice, the city of Louisville is dropping its sanctuary city policies as a result of a strong written warning from my office," her post read. "This should set an example to other cities. 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."

Greenberg said the change will take effect "as soon as practical."

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