Immigration Court or Secret Tribunal? Denver Judge Faces Backlash Over Public Lockout

ACLU says new rules lock out the public, muzzle attorneys, and violate the Constitution—all while immigrant families fight for their lives inside.

WASHINGTON — Immigration court proceedings can mean the difference between family separation and a future in the United States. But in Denver, even getting into the courtroom is now a struggle—one that the ACLU of Colorado says violates the First Amendment and federal law, so writes The Denver Post.

In a letter to Assistant Chief Immigration Judge Matthew Kaufman, the ACLU of Colorado described a set of new restrictions at the Denver Immigration Court that it says “significantly obstruct and limit public and attorney access to immigration proceedings.”

Among the “obstructive tactics” outlined: legal observers being “handcuffed and detained without justification,” denied entry “without explanation,” and barred from taking notes on public dockets or even speaking quietly in hallways. Attorneys were reportedly “prevented from advising litigants in the courthouse,” and long-standing benches were removed from public areas. Observers are now required to either “sit for the entire docket or b…