Judge blocks law expanding Colorado public health’s power to inspect ICE detention center

Months before reports of tuberculosis infecting a detainee at an immigration detention center in Aurora, state lawmakers sought to expand the public health department’s ability to inspect the facility.DENVER (CN) — A federal judge granted a preliminary injunction Thursday blocking a Colorado law that sought to expand the state public health agency’s ability to inspect an immigrant detention facility in Aurora.“HB-1276 applies only to civilian detention centers, of which there is one,” Chief U.S. District Judge Daniel Domenico wrote in the opinion. “Though Colorado argues that the law only brings GEO into compliance with existing state regulations applied to other detention facilities, that law singles out this one category of facility for a separately defined set of restrictions and rulemaking.”Colorado lawmakers passed HB26-1276, the Protect Safety of Individuals Who Are Immigrants Act, expanding the state’s ability to hold unannounced inspections at immigrant detention facilities and creating a $50,000 civil penalty for denying the state access. The law would also require operators of detention facilities to provide the state with annual reports disclosing detainee health issues from pregnancies to chronic conditions and disabilities.The GEO Group, which the federal government contracts to run a 1,500-person ICE detention center in Aurora, sued Colorado in federal court on June 8. Citing the intergovernmental immunity doctrine, GEO asked the federal judge to block the state law from taking effect.The Donald Trump appointee found the new law targeted the sole contractor operating the state’s sole immigrant detention facility in a way “that is sufficient to establish that HB-1276 discriminates against GEO based on its status as a federal contractor.”Rather than granting the injunction indefinitely, Domenico enjoined the state from enforcing the new law through Oct. 15, when GEO’s contract to operate the Aurora ICE Processing Center is set to expire.“The provisions of any new contract that GEO (or another operator) obtains from the federal government may alter the analysis significantly, or make proceeding further with this case unnecessary at all,” Domenico wrote.In a statement, Democratic Attorney General Phil Weiser argued Domenico’s ruling would have a narrow impact on the state’s existing ability to conduct health inspections at the detention center.“Today’s ruling granted GEO Group a narrow, temporary injunction against one provision of a new 2026 law — not the broad relief it sought — and leaves Colorado’s existing public health and safety authority intact,” Weiser wrote over email.“Separately, our lawsuit filed yesterday seeks to enforce that existing authority and require GEO to cooperate with the state’s investigation into tuberculosis at the Aurora facility, and we will continue using every available tool to protect the health and safety of Coloradans,” Weiser added.The Adams County Health Department received a report of a possible tuberculosis case at the facility on June 11, prompting the state to start a public health investigation — or try anyway. After the detention center denied access, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment sued GEO in the Adams County District Court on Aug. 19, asking for a court order enforcing the state’s public health orders.Caused by a bacterial infection in the lungs, tuberculosis is a highly contagious disease and one of the world’s leading causes of death. Detention facilities, where people live in close proximity, pose a high risk of outbreaks.Decades-old state law tasks the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment with investigating and controlling communicable diseases, including tuberculosis.Colorado health officials worry not only about the disease spreading among detainees but also about the bacteria being passed to detention center staff and spreading into the community at large. In light of the risks, Weiser criticized The GEO Group for expecting “Colorado to put blind faith into the facility’s response to the disease.”Neither GEO nor ICE responded immediately to a request for comment.Categories / Immigration, LawSubscribe 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