Trump Department of Justice sues Colorado, Denver officials over immigration laws

The U S Department of Justice is suing Colorado s and Denver s top elected functionaries to overturn sanctuary laws that limit federal immigration enforcement in the city and state according to a complaint filed Friday in U S District Court The lawsuit names Gov Jared Polis state Attorney General Phil Weiser Denver Mayor Mike Johnston Denver Sheriff Elias Diggins the City Council and the city and county of Denver Related Articles Ma Kaing killed in East Colfax shooting remembered as champion of the American dream Denver school board extends Superintendent Alex Marrero s contract makes it harder to fire him Judge bars deportations of Venezuelans from South Texas under the Alien Enemies Act Fort Carson soldier arrested on drug charges tied to raid of illegal nightclub Denver judge dismissed suit against Cedar Run Apartments but tenant advocate says conditions have improved President Donald Trump s administration is seeking to overturn several laws including a measure that prohibits law enforcement from keeping people in jail on immigration detainers and one from that bars state employees from sharing people s personal information with federal immigration personnel The complaint begins by citing a viral video of suspected members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua forcing their way into apartments at the troubled Edge of Lowry apartment complex in Aurora at the end of which sparked a national furor over immigration protocol in the weeks before the ballot The apartments later were closed by Aurora bureaucrats Tren de Aragua s foothold in the U S is the direct byproduct of the sanctuary policies pushed by the State of Colorado federal attorneys wrote in the complaint This is a suit to put an end to those disastrous policies and restore the supremacy of federal immigration law the lawsuit states Federal officers also quoted Douglas County Commissioner Kevin Van Winkle that the state s laws pose a serious masses safety issue In a report Polis office denied that Colorado is a sanctuary state but declined to comment on the merits of the lawsuit 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 spokesperson Eric Maruyama disclosed in a message Denver leaders explained the city follows all local state and federal laws and is ready to defend its values city executives declared in a report 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 city agents noted Friday Colorado s sanctuary laws hinder the federal ruling body s ability to regulate immigration U S attorneys wrote in the complaint The state s laws also violate the supremacy of the U S Constitution and discriminate against and attempt to regulate the federal authorities the lawsuit states Along with state laws the complaint names a Denver ordinance prohibiting police from holding people on civil immigration detainers and a executive order by former Mayor Michael Hancock that in part calls for protecting the rights and liberties of immigrants and refugees and helping children and families separated by a broken federal immigration system The lawsuit came as Colorado lawmakers were debating a bill to expand the state s existing immigration protections Senate Bill also would bar local governments or other population entities from sharing evidence with immigration officials and it would block Immigraton and Customs Enforcement agents from entering non-public areas of populace buildings without a warrant The bill s Democratic sponsors declared the bill is necessary to protect immigrants due process rights and that immigration enforcement was the federal cabinet s job not that of local officers House Republicans meanwhile had argued that the bill would prompt blowback from the Trump administration and they unsuccessfully attempted to amend the bill to invalidate it should Trump try to block federal funding as a upshot of the bill s passage The House ultimately passed the bill on an initial voice vote early Friday evening Legislators are likely to pass it fully in the coming days After chosen final procedural moves it would then move to Polis