Citing environmental concerns, Colorado sues DHS to block new immigration detention facility

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced plans over the summer to contract with the GEO Group to renovate and run a former state prison as a 1,200-bed immigration detention center in Hudson, Colorado.DENVER (CN) — Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday to challenge the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s plan to turn a former state prison into an immigrant detention facility without first completing an environmental review.“Neither DHS nor ICE engaged in the required public review process involving the necessary analysis of environmental impacts from the construction, renovation or operation of this facility, and our state is not aware of any exemption to needing environmental review,” Weiser said on a press call.In July, government contractor GEO Group announced it had signed a $500 million, five-year contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to renovate and manage a detention facility in a former state prison in Hudson, Colorado.Built in 2008, the prison ran from 2009 to 2013, holding a maximum of 871 inmates. The building has since sat vacant for more than a decade.GEO currently manages the state’s only operational immigration detention center in Aurora, Colorado, and is facing a lawsuit over blocking the state from investigating reports of tuberculosis.With a proposed capacity of holding 1,200 detainees, the Big Horn Detention Facility would nearly double the town’s population, raising questions of its impact on the local environment and community, Weiser said.Since January 2025, Weiser has filed and joined 83 lawsuits challenging Trump administration policies. In addition to violating the environmental review process, Weiser said the proposed facility supports “the largest domestic deportation campaign in American history.”Last year, Congress appropriated $45 billion to operate ICE detention centers through 2029 with the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The timeline, Weiser argued in the complaint, does not release the federal government from its obligations under the National Environmental Policy Act to evaluate the impact of building and running such facilities.After serving two terms as attorney general, Weiser is running to replace Governor Jared Polis in November. Both Weiser and Polis are Democrats. During the press conference, Weiser noted he was livestreaming from the Ralph L. Carr Colorado Judicial Center in Denver, which was named after the World War II-era governor who opposed the placement of a Japanese internment camp in Granada, Colorado.Colorado is the third plaintiff to challenge the legality of the proposed Big Horn Detention Facility. In July, several residents sued the Hudson town council to block construction of the facility. Earlier this month, local advocacy groups GreenLatinos and the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition filed a similar lawsuit, raising environmental challenges against the federal government.After receiving 6,000 complaints from residents raising concerns about air quality, water availability and traffic, Weiser said he knew he needed to bring an action on behalf of the state.In addition to disrupting people’s lives, the AG points to a nearby mule deer migration corridor and a designated conservation area supporting native aquatic life, as well as habitat concerns for black-tailed prairie dogs, burrowing owls and Preble’s meadow jumping mouse.“We represent the state of Colorado,” Weiser said. “That gives us a special and important role."In recent years, the federal government completed environmental review before operating both the El Paso Service Processing Center and the joint processing center in Laredo, Texas, Weiser claims in the complaint.Citing violations of the National Environmental Policy Act, the Administrative Procedure Act and the Immigration and Nationality Act, Weiser asked the court to vacate the federal government’s contract with GEO and block construction until it completes adequate environmental review.Representatives for the GEO Group and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to an inquiry for comment.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads