Public commenter ties sanctuary policies to violence, cites $7.3 billion New Jersey estimate

During public comments, a public commenter listed four names — "Stephanie Minter's chair, that chair at the table is empty tonight. Layken Riley's chair is empty tonight. Rachel Moran's chair is empty tonight. Jocelyn Mugaria's chair" — and said those empty seats represent people who were "murdered and hurt and beaten and raped," which the commenter attributed to "what's happened and these policies." The commenter framed the losses as human tragedies and appealed to the meeting for attention to their consequences.

The commenter also said sanctuary states and sanctuary cities "cost a fortune," and cited a State of New Jersey estimate reported in unspecified publications: "7.3 billion, not million, billion dollars every year because of sanctuary policies," the commenter said. The speaker prefaced the figure by saying "this is not me" and that the number "came out in publications," but did not identify a specific report, agency or citation for the estimate. The transcript does not record other speakers responding to or verifying the cost figure or the claim linking the alleged violent acts to sanctuary policies.

The commenter concluded that the combined human and financial costs are "a lot of money for people who are really squeezed" and said "it's horrible and it shouldn't happen." No formal action or vote was recorded in the transcript excerpt.