Federal judge rules in favor of lawsuit brought by Neguse, U.S. House Democrats over access to immigration detention centers
Neguse, who represents Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District, leads a 12-member group of Democrats challenging a Trump policy that limits congressional lawmakers' ability to enter detention facilities
John F. Russell/Steamboat Pilot & Today
A federal judge last week sided with a group of Democratic U.S. House lawmakers who sued President Donald Trump’s administration over a new policy that limits congressional members’ access to federal immigration detention centers.
U.S. District Court Judge Jia Cobb ruled on Dec. 17 that a recently enacted Department of Homeland Security policy likely violates federal law. The policy requires members of Congress to give seven days’ notice before visiting detention centers and limits access to certain Immigration and Customs Enforcement field offices.
A dozen House Democrats sued the administration over the rule in July, led by U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse, whose Colorado district spans from the central and northern mountains to parts of the Front Range.
Cobb’s ruling temporarily blocks the policy. The ruling notes that every year since 2020, Congress has passed and the president has signed legislation that prohibits the Department of Homeland Security from using appropriated funds “to prevent” members of Congress “from entering, for the purpose of conducting oversight,” any immigration facility.
In a joint statement, the lawmakers said the federal judge’s ruling “is a critical victory toward restoring our ability to conduct essential congressional oversight on behalf of the American people.
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“It reinforces the rule of law and reminds the administration that oversight is not optional,” they said. “Real-time, on-the-ground visits to immigration detention facilities help prevent abuses and ensure transparency. Oversight is a core responsibility of members of Congress — and a constitutional duty we do not take lightly. We’ll continue standing up for the rule of law.”
Neguse, in a Dec. 17 post on X, said, “The rule of law will prevail.”
Since beginning his second term in January, Trump has made heightened immigration enforcement a cornerstone of his agenda and has moved to ramp up detentions and deportations.
As of mid-December, Immigration and Customs Enforcement was holding more than 68,000 people in detention centers, according to ICE data. That represents an all-time high, breaking a previous record set by ICE earlier this month, according to reporting by The Guardian.
Democrats have claimed they’ve been blocked from carrying out oversight of detention centers under the Trump administration’s new policy. Before launching their lawsuit, several lawmakers reported incidents where they were blocked from entering facilities.
That includes Rep. Jason Crow, whose district is home to the immigration detention center in Aurora, who said he was denied entry to the facility in July, despite bringing a printout of the law that allows members of Congress to show up unannounced.
Neguse’s office, in a previous statement announcing the lawsuit, raised concerns about reports of “mistreatment, overcrowding,” and “unsanitary conditions” in detention centers.
Cobb’s ruling on detention center access is not final, and litigation is expected to continue.
