Category Archives: Issues

June 27, 2019 ACLU Lawsuit: Sheriff’s Agreement with ICE Violates Colorado Law DENVER – ACLU of Colorado filed suit this morning against Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell to challenge his plan to enforce federal immigration law under an agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The ACLU’s lawsuit, on behalf of six Teller County residents and taxpayers, argues that Sheriff Mikesell is diverting their tax money from its intended purpose of enforcing Colorado law.... | Read More

Regardless of your immigration status, you have guaranteed rights under the Constitution.  Take this downloadable resource with you to learn more about your rights as an immigrant, and how to express them. Know Your Rights: Immigrants' Rights - English     | Read More

By Naureen Shah, Senior Advocacy and Policy Counsel JUNE 21, 2019 | 4:30 PM This week, President Trump kicked off his re-election campaign by tweeting a threat to deport millions of immigrants, apparently referring to his administration’s plans for mass raids on families across the country. Meanwhile, news continues to break about what his administration is already doing, as dizzying as it is horrifying: A six-year-old girl dying in the Arizona desert on the way to seek asylum,.... | Read More

DENVER – ACLU of Colorado filed a lawsuit in Federal District Court May 13 against Colorado State Senator Ray Scott for blocking constituent Anne Landman from his official Facebook and Twitter pages. Landman, a resident of Colorado Senate District 7 in Grand Junction, speaks out regularly on public policy issues and writes about Colorado politics on her blog. She also uses social media to interact with fellow constituents and elected officials. Landman had been able to interact with Scott and others.... | Read More

The ACLU of Colorado announced a second settlement this morning on behalf of four individuals who were subjected to an illegal search of their residences at the Suites, a public housing complex in Longmont. The searches were conducted in May 2017 by Longmont police officers and a K-9, at the request of and in conjunction with the Longmont Housing Authority. They were conducted without a warrant or any arguable exception to the warrant requirement. None of the ACLU’s clients consented to the search.... | Read More

We had an ambitious legislative agenda entering into the 2019 session and are happy to announce a series of successes. First, we championed legislation that will fund for the first time in our state's history, comprehensive sex education for schools seeking to adopt such a curriculum. We were able to champion legislation that will bring some relief to our immigrant friends and neighbors and advanced legislation that will reform aspects of our cruel bail system. You made this happen and we thank you.... | Read More

DENVER – The ACLU of Colorado announced that it will present evidence tomorrow, May 7 in Fort Collins Municipal Court in support of its motion to dismiss the prosecution of Adam Wiemold, a homeless man who is charged with illegal “camping” by Fort Collins police for sleeping in his vehicle at a designated rest area where truck drivers regularly rest in their vehicles with impunity. “I was sleeping in my vehicle because, even with a full-time job, I just didn’t make enough money to pay.... | Read More

Denver Municipal Elections- Get-out-the-vote Phone Bank Monday, 5/6 6 pm - 8 pm | Doors open at 5:30 pm | Training starts at 6 pm ACLU of Colorado Offices: 303 E. 17th, Suite 250, Denver, 80218 RSVP HERE Every vote counts. And so does every voter. Join the ACLU of Colorado and voting rights activists as we increase voter turnout by making phone calls and sending texts to voters. We'll encourage voters to turn in their ballots and to support Initiative 300, the Right to Survive ordinance..... | Read More

It is always sad to lose allies and friends of civil rights and civil liberties, but Colorado experienced a particularly great loss recently with the death of the Rev. Tammy Garrett-Williams. A fierce champion for the rights of people caught in the criminal justice system, her Above Waters Project has been deeply rooted in the lives of people directly impacted by mass incarceration and the criminal legal system. Her activism was widely visible across the community, from the NAACP to the Greater.... | Read More

DENVER – The ACLU of Colorado filed a lawsuit this morning seeking previously requested records related to the arrest, detention, and subsequent death of Kamyar Samimi, an Iranian man who died on December 2, 2017 while in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody at the Aurora Contract Detention Facility, a for-profit detention center operated by GEO Group, Inc. Mr. Samimi came to the United States as a student in 1976 and became a Legal Permanent Resident in 1978. ICE agents.... | Read More