An 18-year-old New Yorker arrived home Friday after nearly three months in Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention in Louisiana following a federal judge’s order for his release. ICE had arrested the teenager even though he had a legal status protecting him from deportation; the judge, an appointee of President Donald Trump, called his confinement “unlawful.”

Carlos Guerra Leon, whose case was first reported by New York Focus, has Special Immigrant Juvenile status, or SIJ, a protection for immigrant children who have been abused or neglected. Under the Biden administration, SIJ recipients were automatically considered for deferred action, a type of deportation protection that also allows them to apply for work permits. The Trump administration formally stopped granting deferred action to SIJ recipients in June — but it didn’t strip it from those like Guerra Leon who already had protection.

Unless the Trump administration terminates his deferred action, ICE can’t deport Guerra Leon, US District Judge Terry Doughty wrote in his decision.

If you’re one of the nearly 3 million New Yorkers currently enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, you are likely to see delays in your food benefits next month as a result of the ongoing federal government shutdown. You may also be subject to new work requirements, which could cause hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers to lose their benefits.

That could trigger a hunger crisis. The average enrolled New York household receives $376 per month from the program, which is also a significant source of revenue for the state’s retailers and farmers. Governor Kathy Hochul is facing calls to fund food benefits during the shutdown, but she has so far said the state can’t afford to.

Here’s what you need to know.

Governor Kathy Hochul is digging in after a state court ruled Friday that New York is violating its flagship climate law and ordered the state to comply. Rebuffing the judge, she is gearing up for a rematch in the courts and a potential showdown over the state’s green energy transition during next year’s legislative session.

Ulster County Supreme Court Judge Julian Schreibman gave Governor Kathy Hochul’s administration until February 6 to issue regulations that would “ensure” the state meet emissions targets set out in the law. They include a 40 percent reduction in emissions by 2030, which the state estimates it is at least six years behind on.

Everything is under control, lawyers for the state prison system told a judge last week: “At this time, general population across the state is operating as normal.”

That’s news to the nearly 1,200 men incarcerated at Auburn Correctional Facility.

Prisoners at Auburn are going stir-crazy. Classes, programs, and jobs at the maximum security facility in Cayuga County are mostly canceled. Aside from meal time, people in general population units get an hour out of their cells every other day, according to two incarcerated people — the only time they’re given to shower, purchase items from the commissary, and exercise or socialize in the recreation area.

“This place is a circus,” said Naythen Aubain, who’s incarcerated at Auburn.