Until recently, the expression “no ice” referred to a customer ordering a cold drink without chunks of frozen water in the glass or cup to keep it cool. Today, the expression has developed a new secondary meaning. That new meaning was demonstrated at New Jersey Transit’s monthly Board meeting, held in Atlantic City on April 15. The location was a departure from usual custom of holding such meetings at the agency’s offices in Newark. Because of the unusual venue, the roster of “in-person speakers” who commented at the beginning of the public session was different, and so was an issue that many of them raised. They voiced their concerns that agents from federal Immigration & Customs Enforcement (often called “ICE cops”) are allowed to operate at NJT stations and on the agency’s buses and trains. Other commenters, including “regulars” from North and Central Jersey, expressed similar concerns with statements they made on the phone. On Feb. 11, Gov. Mikie Sherrill signed Executive Order 12, which prohibits ICE agents from operating on State property. Without language to the contrary, that could be construed to include NJT, even though it has a separate corporate identity from the State but is largely under State control. We explored a recent Supreme Court ruling on a different, but related, subject in a March 19 report on the case of Galette v. New Jersey Transit Corp, 607 U.S. ___ (Slip. Op., March 4, 2026). Instead of falling within the governor’s ban on ICE agents operating on…
