Brick Will Never Become A Sanctuary City, Mayor, Council Say

BRICK, NJ — The Brick Township Council approved a resolution Tuesday night rejecting the idea of becoming a sanctuary city and urging Gov. Phil Murphy to rethink having New Jersey become a sanctuary state.

The move Tuesday night, however, was as much about the political battle ahead of the November election and the ongoing fight between Councilman Jim Fozman and Mayor John Ducey as it was about the issue of being a sanctuary.

The resolution, read into the council meeting record by Ducey, provided for the township to not only reject sanctuary city status for the township, but thanked the Ocean County Freeholders for filing a lawsuit to oppose sanctuary state status.

It comes two weeks after Fozman tried to get the council to approve on the spot a resolution he was submitting the on the topic. The council declined, and Fozman immediately began blasting the Democrats for supporting Murphy's state-level move. Ducey responded immediately, saying he was not in favor of the township becoming a sanctuary city.

Ducey reconfirmed that statement Tuesday night, saying allowing the town to be a sanctuary for undocumented immigrants puts residents in danger.

The resolution also backs a move by the Ocean County Freeholders to file a lawsuit against the state over a directive from state Attorney General Gurbir Grewal that says local law enforcement agencies should not cooperate with Immigration and Citizenship Enforcement officers.

Have a news tip? Email karen.wall@patch.com Follow Brick Patch on Facebook.