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El Paso Co. sheriff will appeal ruling on immigrant inmates

Posted at 10:41 AM, Mar 21, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-21 12:41:03-04

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — A Colorado sheriff will appeal a court ruling preventing him from holding inmates who have posted bond for possible deportation.

District Court Judge Eric Bentley ruled Tuesday that El Paso County Sheriff Bill Elder cannot use requests from immigration authorities to continue holding two men after they have paid bond.

In a statement, El Paso County said it will ask the Colorado Supreme Court to consider the preliminary ruling in a lawsuit brought by the Colorado American Civil Liberties Union, saying it involves an "unsettled area of law."

Elder signed an agreement with U.S. Customs Enforcement and Immigration to house inmates. Despite Elder's cooperation with ICE, the county criticized the agency for not honoring "its obligation to defend or stand in the place of the sheriff" in the case.