A federal judge has ruled against the Denver public schools system’s attempts to block immigration officials from carrying out raids on school grounds, marking a win for the Trump administration as it looks to ramp up its deportation efforts. U.S. District Judge Daniel Domenico said Denver Public Schools failed to prove that a recent drop in student attendance at schools was due to the Trump administration reversing a 2021 Biden-era policy of protecting schools from ICE raids. Denver Public Schools filed a federal lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem for reversing the policy, claiming the district was “hindered in fulfilling its mission” to students who didn’t turn up to school for fear of immigration enforcement. The school system also argued that rescinding the policy had caused schools to devote time and resources to teaching students and staff how to remain safe from immigration enforcement. Domenico denied a request for a preliminary injunction and a nationwide preliminary injunction forcing immigration officials to revert to the 2021 guidance.
Moreover, Denver Public Schools said it had to divert resources to respond to fear among students and families over the lifting of longtime rules. The school system has trained staff on how to handle ICE officers if they show up at school, telling them to deny agents entry if they don’t have a warrant signed by a judge. Domenico, a Trump appointee and Colorado’s former solicitor general, stated that the fear surrounding possible enforcement actions in schools may be overstated, pointing out that the school had not yet experienced any raids, and ICE officers still had to obtain approval from supervisors for immigration arrests at sensitive locations. The ruling came just days after Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and Democratic leaders of other cities were grilled by Republican members of Congress about sanctuary city policies that they see as undermining Trump’s immigration and mass deportation efforts, as well as making such cities more dangerous. Since Jan. 20, ICE has arrested and deported thousands of people in the U.S. illegally, most being criminals with convictions in the U.S. or their home countries.
Denver Public Schools expressed disappointment with the ruling but stated that the lawsuit had been successful in making public details of the Trump administration rules. The lawsuit stated that there were more than 90,000 students in the Denver Public Schools system during the 2023-2024 school year, with approximately 4,000 being immigrants. The ruling also comes as the Trump administration has restarted detaining illegal alien families that have deportation orders, with parents being detained with their children at ICE facilities in Texas. Families who have already had their cases heard and have been ordered removed are being targeted, and ICE is actively arresting migrant families that crossed the border illegally in years prior. Border Patrol data shows more than 2 million migrant family units were apprehended while crossing the southern border illegally during the Biden administration.
Denvers’ lawsuit was brought by the school district, rather than the city of Denver, which is a sanctuary city. The fear over the new rules as well as the belief that the old rules provided protection to schools seems to be exaggerated, according to Domenico. He noted that ICE had not carried out any raids at schools and that the head of ICE had issued a directive requiring approval for immigration arrests at sensitive locations. The ruling is seen as a win for the Trump administration’s deportation efforts, as it pushes back against attempts to limit ICE raids on school grounds. Despite Denver Public Schools’ claims of fear and resources being diverted, the judge found that the evidence did not support the need for a preliminary injunction against immigration officials. Fox News’ Bille Melugin, Elizabeth Pritchett, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
