ACLU sues Aurora landlord for threatening tenants with immigration enforcement
DENVER (KDVR) — The American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado filed a lawsuit Tuesday against an Aurora landlord accused of repeatedly threatening to report Venezuelan tenants to immigration authorities.
The ACLU said the couple has pending asylum applications in the U.S. The organization is arguing to the court that the 'landlord's actions were an unlawful attempt to force the family to vacate their home without due process.'
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According to the complaint, the couple moved into the apartment in early October 2024 with their two sons and agreed to pay $1,800 in rent each month under a lease. The ACLU of Colorado alleged in the lawsuit that friction between the tenants and landlord began in November 2024 when the couple 'incurred unexpected medical expenses that led them to fall behind on rent.' The complaint states that on Dec. 4, 2024, one of the adult residents and one of the juveniles came home to find the locks on the apartment were changed with no prior notice or valid court order for possession of property.
'That night, Mr. Doe and the couple's fifteen-year-old son were forced to sleep in their car overnight in the winter cold. The next day, they were able to access the Apartment through a window,' the complaint states. The couple filed the lawsuit through attorneys under pseudonyms.
The lawsuit says the family contacted the landlord and were told they 'could not do anything about it because they are not 'from here' are Venezuelan, and have no rights.' The ACLU alleged this was an intimidation and coercion tactic to stop the tenants from asserting their rights.
This incident was resolved after the family made a $1,000 payment, and then a $300 payment a week after the first payment. Management allegedly responded by putting a key in the family's mailbox, allowing them full access to the apartment.
A second incident was described in the lawsuit dating to Jan. 15. The complaint states that the landlord knocked on the family's door, 'shoved some papers through the door and misleadingly told Plaintiffs (the family) they had 'ten days to move out.''
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On Jan. 24, a landlord came to the apartment again. The lawsuit says the man who visited the apartment 'slammed' the front door back, and could have broken the nose of the resident who answered the door. The lawsuit also says the landlord had a handwritten paper in his hand, allegedly showing what the family owed the management company, but allegedly the landlord did not show the paper to the family.
Instead, the landlord 'raised his voice,' speaking in 'broken Spanish' about how they owed him money, and if they didn't pay they would be thrown out on the street. He allegedly told them they only had a few hours to move out, or he would call immigration.
One of the adults told the landlord that the demand to leave within hours was illegal, and the landlord repeated his immigration threats, later telling them 'Migra today.'
FOX31 called a number associated with the company named in the lawsuit, PHS Rent LLC., and was told they were not offering comment on the lawsuit before the woman who answered hung up the line.
The family is seeking damages for harm caused by the landlords, and restraining orders to prevent the landlords from repeating these actions on other families.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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