DOJ sues Colorado, Denver for so-called ‘sanctuary laws'
DENVER (KDVR) — The U.S. Department of Justice is suing the state of Colorado and the city of Denver for laws and statutes the federal government says are 'sanctuary laws.'
The federal government alleges in its lawsuit, filed in Colorado District Court on Friday, that the laws are designed to 'interfere with and discriminate against the Federal Government's enforcement of federal immigration law.'
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The lawsuit specifically mentions the troubled Aurora apartment complexes that went viral after a video showing armed men in a stairwell was first reported on by FOX31's Vicente Arenas. The men in the video were later connected to Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang that's been publicized during recent immigration efforts under President Donald Trump.
The lawsuit argues that federal immigration law preempts state law. Colorado has a law that prevents local law enforcement from enforcing federal immigration law, among other things, and it has been decried by many law enforcement advocates and at least three members of U.S. Congress.
'But the Sanctuary Laws were enacted for the sole purpose of impeding the Federal Government's ability to enforce immigration law and remove illegal aliens,' the lawsuit alleges. 'These sanctuary policies have 'tied the hands of law enforcement, emboldened dangerous criminals and left [Colorado's] communities vulnerable.''
The lawsuit specifically names Gov. Jared Polis, Attorney General Phil Weiser, Denver Sheriff Elias Diggins and Denver Mayor Mike Johnston. The mayor's office provided FOX31 with a statement, which said:
'Denver will not be bullied or blackmailed, least of all by an administration that has little regard for the law and even less for the truth. We follow all laws local, state, and federal and stand ready to defend our values.'
Denver Mayor's Office
The Colorado Governor's Office also spoke out against the lawsuit.
The statement was released Friday afternoon to FOX31.
'Colorado is not a sanctuary state. The State of Colorado works with local, state and federal law enforcement regularly and we value our partnerships with local, county and federal law enforcement agencies to make Colorado safer. If the courts say that any Colorado law is not valid then we will follow the ruling. We are not going to comment on the merits of the lawsuit.'
Colorado Governor's Office spokesperson
The laws, as previously reported by FOX31, include:
House Bill 19-1124, 'Protect Colorado Residents From Federal Government Overreach,' according to the text, allows law enforcement to cooperate or assist federal immigration authorities in the execution of a federal warrant, but prohibits law enforcement from arresting or detaining individuals based solely on a civil immigration detainer
The measure also stops probation officers from giving someone's personal information to federal immigration authorities
The measure also ensures that individuals who are to be interviewed via telephone or video by a federal immigration authority are informed of their rights
House Bill 23-1100, 'Restrict Government Involvement in Immigration Detention,' prevents state or local government agency employees from entering into intergovernmental agreements allowing for law enforcement to rent bed space to ICE
The measure also terminated two such agreements in the state
The lawsuit alleges that the Denver statutes and Colorado laws are impeding federal immigration operations. Last weekend, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents joined local law enforcement in a raid of a Colorado Springs nightclub. Federal officials said they detained over 100 people and alleged that many were undocumented immigrants.
The lawsuit notes that one of Colorado's laws prohibits state and local governments from being involved in immigration detention. The lawsuit says that currently, the ICE immigration detention center in Aurora is the only location where ICE can detain individuals within Colorado.
'Because ICE's Denver Field Office covers the entire states of Colorado and Wyoming, and the federal government can no longer temporarily house detainees in county detention facilities, immigration officers are forced to travel long distances, even at late hours and in poor weather conditions, to transport people to the Aurora facility,' the lawsuit states. '(F)ederal immigration authorities have to release individuals that it otherwise would detain or alternatively incur significant transport expenses that it would not have incurred prior to CRS 24-76.7-103.'
The complaint also says that Colorado's laws 'impede DHS's ability to readily obtain from local law enforcement the release date' of undocumented immigrants that DHS believes are removable from the U.S.
The lawsuit says that because of this, federal immigration officers are forced to 'engage in difficult and dangerous efforts to re-arrest' or 'determine that it is not appropriate to transfer' an undocumented immigrant to local custody in order to enforce immigration law.
The DOJ is seeking a judgment that says Colorado and Denver's provisions violate the Supremacy Clause, which states 'the activities of the Federal Government are free from regulation by any state.'
This is a developing story and will be updated as new information is obtained.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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