A federal judge ruled against a Denver Public Schools request to block federal immigration agents from making arrests at sensitive places like schools. The decision is among the latest wins for the Trump administration as officials seek to enact their mass deportation agenda.
The lawsuit was the first of its kind filed by a public school. The preliminary injunction was filed by DPS against the Department of Homeland Security and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noam, alleging the district was "hindered in fulfilling its missions" to the students who are not attending school "for fear of immigration enforcement actions occurring on DPS school grounds."
The filing also claimed the federal policy was diverting resources from the district to prepare its staff in case of immigration arrests on DPS property.
U.S. District Judge Daniel Domenico, who was appointed by President Donald Trump in 2017, denied the school district's request, which ultimately would have prevented immigration agents from making arrests on school property.
"I agree that DPS has shown there's real confusion and concerns and fears among some portions of those families," Domenico said in announcing his decision at the conclusion of the hearing in Denver's federal courthouse. "They have shown they are having to spend time and effort to address those concerns."
Domenico argued that the school district did not show how changes to Homeland Security's so-called sensitive locations policy impacted its schools rather than broader concerns about the rise in immigration enforcement under the new Trump administration.
"The concern was that there would be no limitations or no protections for schools necessarily and that, under the new memo, I think is an overstatement," Domenico said, referring to a late-January directive. "The fact that there has been no action on school property in the time that the memo has been released here or as far as we know anywhere else highlights that fact."
DPS officials argued that a previous 2021 policy— which allowed immigration agents to make arrests at schools so long as they received approval to do so from higher-ranking officials— provided guardrails the district could use to assuage parents' concerns that routine immigration sweeps wouldn't be happening at schools.
The new policy, DPS argued, was unclear as to when such approvals would take place, leaving the decision "to the whim of a lieutenant that a raid will make sense." But attorneys for the Homeland Security department said in a rebuttal that the new policy wasn't that much different from the one that was in place before Trump began his second term.
Denver's lawsuit comes after the Trump administration gave the go-ahead for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to make arrests in some previously protected places like schools, places of worship and hospitals. The Biden administration had previously prohibited the agency from making arrests in or near these so-called "sensitive locations."
Following the judge's decision, DPS issued a statement doubling down on their position and lamenting Domenico's response.
"While we are disappointed in the judge's ruling, it is important to note that he acknowledged the real damages public schools have suffered. He also acknowledged that there are no fundamental differences between the 2021 and 2025 policy, which had not been known prior to our court filing," a DPS spokesperson said in a statement shortly after the ruling. "DPS was successful in forcing the government to release the new 2025 guidance that had previously been kept from the public."
Despite the ruling, it is likely this won't be the last word on the matter. U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper, both Colorado Democrats, have introduced legislation in Congress to restore protected areas, such as schools, churches, healthcare facilities and more where families might congregate out in public. The bill makes exceptions for "exigent circumstances," such as acts of terrorism or situations where arrests might prevent injury or death.
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