Democrat lawmakers in Colorado have introduced a bill to protect immigrants from federal immigration authorities.
Democrat Senators Mike Weissman and Julie Gonzales, as well as Representatives Lorena Garcia and Elizabeth Velasco, are behind the effort.
“People are scared and afraid. And I understand that, and I respect it, because I’ve also got a little pit of anxiety in my stomach too,” Gonzales said, as per The Colorado Sun. “We drafted a lot of this policy in response to the actual tactics that we have seen be utilized by ICE now under the second Trump administration.”
“We can’t control what ICE is going to do and whether they are going to break the law. We are witnessing that play out in states across the country, a trampling of due process,” Gonzales added. “What we can do is solve for how we as Colorado are going to act and how we are going to respond.”
Senate Bill 276 repeals certain affidavit requirements and “prohibits the jail custodian from delaying a defendant’s release for the purpose of an immigration enforcement operation,” a bill summary says. The bill further blocks local governments from sharing personal information with ICE and other immigration officials unless presented with a warrant.
Denver Mayor Mike Johnston said in January that his city will only work with ICE on cases involving violent criminals. “The whole state is bound by our state law in this, which is … we don’t honor ICE detainers,” he stated. “If ICE calls and says, ‘Will you hold someone for three more days?’ That doesn’t happen in Douglas County, Yuma, or Denver. We’re not having our local police doing federal law enforcement, that’s not our job.”
