Latest news with #AmericanCivilLibertiesUnionofColorado
Axios
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Judge halts deportations of Aurora ICE detainees to El Salvador
At least 11 detainees held at the ICE facility in Aurora have been transferred to the notoriously dangerous CECOT prison in El Salvador, according to Tim Macdonald, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado. Yes, but: Following a Denver federal judge's temporary restraining order issued Tuesday, future transfers to the infamous mega-prison could be halted for Venezuelans held in Aurora's processing center. Why it matters: The order could benefit other detainees and marks the latest court ruling against ICE's actions. Driving the news: Macdonald is representing two unnamed Venezuelan nationals detained in Aurora who filed a lawsuit earlier this month against President Trump and other federal officials. The suit challenges the U.S. government's authority to deport them. The latest: On Tuesday, Denver federal judge Charlotte Sweeney ruled that the Trump administration cannot deport Venezuelan detainees in Aurora to a prison in El Salvador without providing proper notice and an opportunity to challenge the deportation in court. Sweeney's ruling follows her initial order last week that temporarily halted Alien Enemies Act deportations in Colorado, and a Supreme Court decision on Saturday that blocked deportations at a Texas detention center under the same 1798 wartime law. The big picture: Sweeney's decision affects not just the two Venezuelans named in the suit but all other Venezuelan detainees in Aurora who face imminent deportation under the Alien Enemies Act. Macdonald estimates that more than 100 detainees in Aurora could be affected by the ruling. Zoom in: Details remain scarce on the 11 Colorado detainees recently transferred to El Salvador. One — 28-year-old Jose Eduardo Moran-Garcia, a Salvadoran national — was sent back to El Salvador on March 28. ICE Denver stated he is wanted for aggravated homicide, unlawful groupings, displacement of individuals and robbery in his home country. Another, 22-year-old Venezuelan Yohendry Jerez-Hernandez, was transferred, according to his attorney, despite no final deportation order being issued, 9News reports. Nixon Perez, 19, a Venezuelan living in Aurora, was among 238 Venezuelans deported on March 15 after being accused by federal immigration authorities of ties to the Tren de Aragua gang, CBS News reports. What's next: Sweeney's temporary restraining order is in place until May 6, but can be extended, the Colorado Sun reports.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Judge: Elizabeth School District must return banned books to libraries during appeal process
DENVER (KDVR) — While the Elizabeth School District is working to appeal a ruling that prevents the district from removing books for expressed views from its libraries, a judge ruled that the banned books must be put back on the shelves while the trial plays out. On Thursday, a U.S. district court judge for the District of Colorado announced that the school district needs to return the removed books to their libraries by 5 p.m. on Saturday. This came after a U.S. District Court judge ruled the district must return all books it removed no later than March 25, which the district appealed. Elizabeth School District facing further legal action regarding book ban The Elizabeth School District argued to keep the books off the shelves during the appeal process; however, on Thursday, a judge ruled that the books must be put back by Saturday while the appeal is underway. This court ruling stems from an ongoing effort by the district to remove several books from libraries. In August 2024, the Elizabeth School District 'temporarily' pulled 19 books from the shelves and adopted a 'sensitive topic protocol' due to the material in the books. This material includes LGBTQ+ topics and racial issues. These books included: 'The Hate U Give,' Angie Thomas 'Thirteen Reasons Why,' Jay Asher 'Pride: Championing LGBTQ Rights,' Rebecca Felix 'You Should See Me in a Crown,' Leah Johnson 'It's Your World — If You Don't Like It, Change It,' Mikki Halpin 'The Kite Runner,' Khaled Hosseini 'Beloved,' Toni Morrison 'The Bluest Eye,' Toni Morrison 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower,' Stephen Chbosky 'Looking for Alaska,' John Green 'Nineteen Minutes,' Jodi Picoult 'Speak,' Laurie Anderson 'Identical,' Ellen Hopkins 'Fallout,' Ellen Hopkins 'Glass,' Ellen Hopkins 'Burned,' Ellen Hopkins 'Crank,' Ellen Hopkins 'Smoke,' Ellen Hopkins 'George,' Alex Gino The district was sued in December 2024 after the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado, representing two students in the Elizabeth School District and other stakeholders, claimed that the books were removed because they violated some 'school board members' partisan and political values.' The lawsuit claimed that removing the books violated the First Amendment. FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox A U.S. District Court judge ruled in March that the district can't remove books if it 'disagrees with the views expressed therein or merely to further their preferred political or religious orthodoxy.' The judge ordered the district to lift the ban while it plays out in court, but the district appealed that ruling. The district is still working to appeal this ruling, but for now, the books are ordered to go back on the shelves by Saturday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Yahoo
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.' DEA takes 3 suspects with possible ties to a Mexican drug cartel into custody 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.'' DEA takes suspected Venezuelan gang member into custody in Denver area 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.
