ACLU argues that Laramie County Sheriff Brian Kozak contracted with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, effectively deputizing local law enforcement to operate as immigration agents, without the proper oversight of the Laramie County Commission.

The ACLU of Wyoming and Lance & Hall, LLP, this week filed a lawsuit challenging Laramie County’s contracts with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Laramie County Sheriff Brian Kozak signed the contracts, commonly called 287(g) agreements, without the authorization of the Laramie County Commission, the county’s governing body. He also failed to comply with the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act’s rulemaking process that would have ensured that the community had an opportunity to comment on the contracts before they were adopted as county policy.

The lawsuit was filed in the First Judicial District Court in Laramie County court on behalf of three plaintiffs: Juntos Wyoming, the Unitarian Universalist Church of Cheyenne and Drew’s Barbershop. Each has had to significantly alter their normal business operations to respond to the consequences of the county’s involvement with 287(g).

Download a copy of the complaint: HERE