Latest news with #RockyMountainImmigrantAdvocacyNetwork
CBS News
30-05-2025
- General
- CBS News
Attorneys scramble to help migrants detained outside Denver immigration court
Fears and nerves shook up some families at Denver immigration court on Thursday, after immigration advocates learned one family was detained by immigration agents after the family attended their scheduled immigration hearing. "It was a family of three with a small child clutching to his father's neck," said Emily Brock, Deputy Managing Attorney with Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network's Children's program. CBS Brock arrived at immigration court as the family of three was being taken into ICE custody, but she said they could not do anything to stop the process. Instead, her organization scrambled to get immigration attorneys to show up and help prevent others from being detained. "This is a new trend that is happening nationwide, and now we've seen it in Denver," said Brock. Brock said arresting people at courthouses is a new ICE tactic to detain and expedite the removal process for more migrants, amid the Trump Administration's latest quota to arrest over 3,000 migrants a day. "Generally, the advice is if you are set for a hearing in immigration court, you need to appear for that hearing because otherwise, if you don't show up, you can be ordered removed for not showing up," said Brock. "So, just by clearly not showing up, you can get a removal order, and that makes you at a greater risk for enforcement action." CBS Typically, when a migrant appears before the court in a removal hearing, they may get the chance to have their case dismissed by a judge. This is generally a positive thing. However, having a case dismissed may now be used against the individual. "This is where I think the surprise comes in and why we scrambled. Now, a dismissal means that they can be arrested as they leave the court and be placed in these expedited removal proceedings," said Brock. "Some people don't understand, they haven't been able to talk to an attorney about what this means," said Immigration Attorney Cristina Uribe Reyes. It is why immigration lawyers like Reyes stepped up to help educate families who went into court. Some advocates even handed out fliers, urging families entering into court to know their rights beforehand. "A lot of these cases are at the last stage where they're just waiting for their final hearing to present the case," said Reyes. "Now, we're having to start all over again from step zero when they get detained." A spokesperson with the Department of Homeland Security issued this statement in response to these increased detainment measures by ICE: "Secretary Noem is reversing Biden's catch and release policy that allowed millions of unvetted illegal aliens to be let loose on American streets. This Administration is once again implementing the rule of law. Most aliens who illegally entered the United States within the past two years are subject to expedited removals. Biden ignored this legal fact and chose to release millions of illegal aliens, including violent criminals, into the country with a notice to appear before an immigration judge. ICE is now following the law and placing these illegal aliens in expedited removal, as they always should have been. If they have a valid credible fear claim, they will continue in immigration proceedings, but if no valid claim is found, aliens will be subject to a swift deportation." An ICE spokesperson also issued their own statement: "U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is executing its mission of identifying and removing criminal aliens and others who have violated our nation's immigration laws. All aliens in violation of U.S. immigration law may be subject to arrest, detention and, if found removable by final order, removal from the United States, regardless of nationality. For operational security and for the safety of our law enforcement personnel, ICE does not confirm, deny, or otherwise discuss ongoing or future operations. The agency publicly announces operational results when appropriate." While it is unclear if ICE agents will come back and detain more families exiting court in the days to come, Brock said the challenge is having enough manpower to be available to help families after losing federal funding to support some of their programs. "When the contracts for the legal orientation programs were canceled, we had to cut back on staff, we had to reallocate staff members to other programs, and so we aren't necessarily able to be here 24/7 or have the presence that we used to be able to have," she said. She said families can and should ask for more time in their cases if the judge moves to dismiss, or oppose dismissal, and have the chance for their cases to be heard without the fear of being taken into custody. The biggest message to families, however, is that they still should show up to their scheduled court hearing. "This is an attack on due process, and all it's going to do is ferment fear in the community," said Brock.
CBS News
22-04-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Judge bars removal of migrants in Colorado under Alien Enemies Act
A federal judge in Denver has granted a temporary restraining order barring the removal of migrants from the district of Colorado under the Alien Enemies Act. Lawyers for the American Civil Liberties Union and the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network argued during a hearing on Monday that two men from Venezuela were in imminent danger of being deported to a prison in El Salvador. Further, the lawyers for the migrants said that 11 men from Colorado have already been sent to El Salvador's Terrorism Confinement Center, or CECOT — among the hundreds of migrants sent to the supermax prison by the Trump administration. "We are thankful that the Court put a stop to the Trump administration's unlawful attempt to disappear Colorado residents to a Salvadoran mega-prison," said Tim Macdonald, ACLU of Colorado Legal Director. "Due process is fundamental to the rule of law in this country, and the government has shown a rampant disregard for this essential civil right. The Trump administration's desire to evade due process is a threat to all of us. We will continue to fight to permanently stop the government from disappearing people to foreign prisons without due process and in violation of the law. Not one more person should face this nightmare scenario." CBS News Colorado has reached out to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for comment. The terms of the Colorado restraining order expire on May 6. In a ruling on April 7, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered that "AEA detainees must receive notice... that they are subject to removal under the Act. The notice must be afforded within a reasonable time and in such a manner as will allow them to actually seek habeas relief in proper venue before such removal occurs." The high court's order did not indicate the terms of "reasonable" notice, so it was debated in court on Monday. In her order, Judge Charlotte Sweeney wrote that individuals subject to deportation under the AEA must receive 21 days' notice, be informed of the right to judicial review, and consult with an attorney. Such notice must also be written in a language the individual understands. In March, President Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, allowing the executive branch to detain or deport noncitizens it deems "dangerous," particularly those administration officials allege are part of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua . Last month, the administration used the law to send more than 200 people to a prison in El Salvador . The last time the Act was invoked was during World War II, when Japanese Americans were interned at Camp Amache in Colorado.
CBS News
22-04-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Judge bars removal of migrants from Colorado under Alien Enemies Act
A federal judge in Denver has granted a temporary restraining order (TRO) barring the removal of migrants from the district of Colorado under the Alien Enemies Act (AEA). Lawyers for the American Civil Liberties Union and the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network argued during a hearing on Monday that two men from Venezuela were in imminent danger of being deported to a prison in El Salvador. Further, the lawyers for the migrants said that 11 men from Colorado have already been sent to the Terrorism Confinement Center or CECOT in El Salvador. The terms of the Colorado TRO expire on May 6, 2025. In a ruling on April 7, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered that "AEA detainees must receive they are subject to removal under the Act. The notice must be afforded within a reasonable time and in such a manner as will allow them to actually seek habeas relief in proper venue before such removal occurs." The high court's order did not indicate the terms of "reasonable" notice, so it was debated in court on Monday. In her order, Judge Charlotte Sweeney wrote that individuals subject to deportation under the AEA must receive 21 days' notice, be informed of the right to judicial review, and consult with an attorney. Such notice must also be written in a language the individual understands. In March, the president invoked the Alien Enemies Act, allowing the executive branch to detain or deport noncitizens it deems "dangerous," particularly those administration officials say are part of the gang Tren de Aragua . Last month, the administration used the law to send more than 200 people to a prison in El Salvador . The last time the Act was invoked was during World War II, when Japanese Americans were interned at Camp Amache in Colorado.
CBS News
21-04-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Trump's use of Alien Enemies Act deportations face legal test in Colorado federal court
A showdown in federal court in Denver could help shape the legal landscape surrounding deportations. A high-stakes hearing in Denver in a case filed by immigrants' rights groups against the Trump administration concluded Monday morning. Attorneys for the Trump administration argued that people facing deportation should be allotted 24 hours' notice to be able to fight their deportation order in court, but attorneys for the ACLU and Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network argued that 24 hours isn't "reasonable," as ordered by the U.S. Supreme Court. "The government wants to give as little notice as possible so they can pull people out of the country without a judge reviewing it," Tim Macdonald, legal director of the ACLU of Colorado, told CBS News Colorado outside the courthouse on Monday. "The idea that 24 hours is sufficient for someone who's detained at the Aurora detention facility, who likely doesn't speak English, who may not have a high level of education, who doesn't have a lawyer, who doesn't have access to a phone -- the idea that that person can file a, quote, 'write of habeas corpus' in 24 hours is preposterous." Macdonald went on to say that alleged Nazis were afforded more rights in court after World War II than Venezuelans facing deportation under the Trump administration, echoing what a U.S. Appeals Court judge said in Washington, D.C. last month. Charlotte Sweeney, U.S. District judge for the District of Colorado, said on Monday she wouldn't rule on the case for 24 hours. During that hearing, attorneys for the ACLU and Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network said 11 people have been deported from Colorado to El Salvador and about 85% of people being held in the Aurora ICE Processing Center have not yet been able to retain legal counsel, which those groups argue is a violation of their due process rights. Court records show the hearing lasted just over an hour. In addition to President Trump, the defendants named in the case include U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, ICE Director Todd Lyons, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, ICE Denver Field Office Director Robert Gaudian, and Dawn Ceja, warden of the ICE Processing Center in Aurora. The U.S. Supreme Court issued a rare weekend ruling temporarily halting the Trump administration's plan to deport more Venezuelan migrants under a seldom-used wartime law passed in 1798, the Alien Enemies Act . The decision came as mass protests continued across the country denouncing the Trump administration's immigration policies. The administration is urging the court to reconsider its decision blocking the deportations. The president has invoked the Alien Enemies Act, allowing the executive branch to detain or deport noncitizens it deems "dangerous." Last month, the administration used the law to send more than 200 migrants to a prison in El Salvador . Now, El Salvador's president has proposed exchanging the deported migrants for political prisoners held in Venezuela. In Denver, a federal court recently barred the removal of any noncitizens within Colorado who are or will be subject to the Alien Enemies Act. Some of those previously deported from Colorado have already been sent to the El Salvador prison, according to their attorneys. At issue is what kind of legal rights migrants have to challenge the government's allegations before they are removed from the U.S. Trump has said the United States is facing an "invasion" by the Tren de Aragua gang and that he has the authority to use the 1798 law. The act was last invoked during World War II, including in Colorado, to hold Japanese Americans at internment camps, including Camp Amache . "If you think of internment camps during World War II in the United States, that's the kind of framework that we're looking at in terms of how this law has been used in the past," Laura Lunn, an immigrant advocacy lawyer with the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network, said. The legal battle has triggered a series of emergency filings over the weekend after the Supreme Court bumped a case out of U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C., saying it needed to be filed in Texas and other states from which people are being deported. Asked about why this case matters, Macdonald said, "if the government can remove these folks without due process, it erodes civil liberties for every one of us, and they could be next. We could be next. If the government is able to dispense with due process, it's a risk for liberty for all of us."
CBS News
21-04-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Trump's Alien Enemies Act deportations face legal test in Colorado federal court
A showdown in federal court in Denver could help shape the legal landscape surrounding deportations. The U.S. Supreme Court issued a rare weekend ruling temporarily halting the Trump administration's plan to deport more Venezuelan migrants under a seldom-used wartime law, the Alien Enemies Act. The decision came as mass protests continued across the country denouncing the Trump administration's immigration policies. The administration is urging the court to reconsider its decision blocking the deportations. The president has invoked the Alien Enemies Act , a centuries-old law allowing the executive branch to detain or deport noncitizens deemed dangerous. Last month, the administration used the law to send more than 200 migrants to a prison in El Salvador . Now, El Salvador's president has proposed exchanging the deported migrants for political prisoners held in Venezuela. In Denver, a federal court recently barred the removal of any noncitizens within Colorado who are or will be subject to the Alien Enemies Act. Some of those previously deported from Colorado have already been sent to the El Salvador prison, according to their attorneys. At issue is what kind of legal rights migrants have to challenge the government's allegations before they are removed from the U.S. Mr. Trump has said the United States is facing an "invasion" by the Tren de Aragua gang and that he has the authority to use the 1798 law. The act was last invoked during World War II, including in Colorado, to hold Japanese Americans at internment camps, including Camp Amache . "If you think of internment camps during World War II in the United States, that's the kind of framework that we're looking at in terms of how this law has been used in the past," Laura Lunn, an immigrant advocacy lawyer with the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network, said. The legal battle has triggered a series of emergency filings over the weekend after the Supreme Court bumped a case out of U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C., saying it needed to be filed in Texas and other states from which people are being deported. A high-stakes hearing in Denver concluded Monday morning. U.S. District Judge Charlotte Sweeney said she wouldn't rule on the case for 24 hours but during that hearing, attorneys for the ACLU and Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network said 11 people have been deported from Colorado to El Salvador and that about 85% of people being held in the Aurora ICE Processing Center have not yet been able to retain legal counsel, which those groups argue is a violation of their due process rights.
