News & Commentary

Recent actions by ICE and the Trump deportation machine have raised concerns in the Colorado immigrant community. Now is a good time to remind everyone that the Constitution and Bill of Rights protects “We the people,” not “We the citizens.” Field Director Alejandra Garza and Staff Attorney Arash Jahanian present a special know your rights discussion for immigrants and their families. We also have a bonus pod of this presentation for our Spanish-speaking audience. CIRC Rapid Response hotline: 1-844-864-8341 RMIAN hotline for detained individuals and family members: 303-866-9308 ICE Locator page: https://locator.ice.gov/odls/#/index

The Department of Justice has suspended funding for the Legal Orientation Program which provides essential legal information to people in immigration detention. Staff Attorney Arash Jahanian sits down with Mekela Goehring, executive director of the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network, to discuss the consequences of ending the program and the most important things immigration detainees and their families should know. Also, an update from Jen Samano. For more info on RMIAN go to www.rmian.org. The hotline for detained individuals and family members is: (303) 866-9308 CALL TO ACTION: Urge Colorado lawmakers to increa

Call to Action: If your Colorado driver’s license has been canceled because of court debt in a traffic case you couldn’t afford, contact Becca Curry at [email protected] or 720-402-3115.   Call to Action: Contact the Joint Budget Committee and urge them to focus on the education and well-being of students and not an increased police presence. Sen. Dominick Moreno: [email protected] 303.866.4857 Sen. Kevin Lundberg: [email protected] 303.866.4853 Sen. Ken Lambert:

DENVER - The ACLU of Colorado announced a settlement this morning on behalf of Michael Bailey, who was jailed for 52 days awaiting his first appearance before a judge in 2015. Bailey was held in the Teller County Jail without bond on a 4-year-old misdemeanor warrant out of Pueblo County. When he was finally transferred and appeared before the Pueblo County Court, he was immediately released on a personal recognizance bond, and his charges were dismissed soon afterward. While in jail, Bailey lost his job and missed two months of pay.

The Purple State Report is brought to you by the ACLU of Colorado. Our show was produced by Vanessa Michel, John Krieger and myself, Alejandra Garza with original theme music by Pablo Novelas. Additional music by Khruangbin.  If you have feedback or suggestions for future episodes email us at [email protected]. 

DENVER – El Paso County Sheriff Bill Elder is violating Colorado law by refusing, at the request of federal immigration officials, to release prisoners who have posted bond, completed their sentence, or otherwise resolved their criminal case, according to a class action lawsuit filed today by the ACLU of Colorado.

On this bonus pod, John talks with Terese Howard from Denver Homeless Out Loud and Trigg Bundgaard one of the founders of the Coalition for Compassion and Action about the Right to Rest Act, a bill that pushes back on the criminalization of homelessness in Colorado. The Purple State Report is brought to you by the ACLU of Colorado. Our show was produced by Vanessa Michel, John Krieger and Alejandra Garza with original theme music by Pablo Novelas. Additional music by Phil Collins. If you have feedback or suggestions for future episodes email us at [email protected].