Denver mayor announces executive order banning ICE from city property | 9news.com

DENVER — Denver Mayor Mike Johnston signed an executive order on Thursday banning federal immigration agents from city property and directing local police to protect peaceful protesters near U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations.

"In Denver, we will not allow ICE access to any city-owned or city-controlled building," Johnston said at a news conference on Thursday. "We will not allow ICE to use city property to stage civil immigration actions, and we will encourage private businesses in Denver to post signs doing the same."

But the order may be more symbolic than enforceable.

Johnston signed Executive Order 152 at a news conference, framing it as a response to residents' growing fear following the Trump administration's "Operation Metro Surge," which sent thousands of federal officers into large U.S. cities. Federal agents killed two American citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, in Minneapolis during those operations.

"Denverites ask me every day: What will we do if that chaos comes to Denver?" Johnston said. "Our goal is not to provoke, but to protect."

The order prohibits ICE from using any city-owned or city-controlled property, including buildings, parks, parking lots, and rights-of-way, as staging areas, processing locations, or operations bases for civil immigration enforcement, unless agents present a valid judicial warrant or court order.

"In Denver, we will not allow ICE access to any city-owned or city-controlled building," Johnston said. "We will not allow ICE to use city property to stage civil immigration actions, and we will encourage private businesses in Denver to post signs doing the same."

It also directs Denver Police, the Denver Sheriff's Department, and Denver Fire to use de-escalation tactics to protect peaceful protesters near ICE operations, requires body camera recordings at all immigration enforcement scenes, and directs Denver police to independently investigate reports of violence, property damage or other criminal conduct by ICE agents, regardless of any parallel federal investigation.

"If an ICE agent assaults or shoots or kills a civilian in Denver, we will investigate and prosecute that crime as the facts demand," Johnston said.

City Attorney Miko Brown said the order represents responsible governance, not defiance.

"Setting clear legal boundaries is not an act of defiance; it's responsible governance," Brown said. "When roles are clearly defined, and authority is exercised transparently, it reduces confusion, prevents conflicts, and ensures that public safety efforts remain focused on keeping our entire community safe."

9NEWS legal analyst Scott Robinson said the order, despite being detailed and far-reaching, is largely symbolic.

"It is very well written, very detailed, very far-reaching, and largely unenforceable," Robinson said.

Robinson argued that federal agents have a legal right to enforce federal law, and that barring them specifically from city property while allowing other individuals access raises serious constitutional problems.

"Federal agents have a right to enforce federal law, and to try and ban them from city property while letting other individuals of any sort of background on city property is really not legal," Robinson said.

Johnston and city officials contend it is enforceable, comparing the restrictions to permitting requirements for public events.

"What we do have is control over public spaces, over what kind of activations can happen there, in the same way you couldn't hold an event on public property without a permit," Johnston said. "If this is an activity not in cooperation with local law enforcement on city property, we feel clear we have the capacity to dictate or control who can or can't use that land."

Robinson was unconvinced.

"There's a fundamental difference between holding an event on city property and not being able to enforce federal law by banning federal agents from city property," Robinson said.

Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas said officers will not rush to cite or arrest ICE agents found on city property, emphasizing that direct confrontation would be counterproductive.

"We're going to lead with de-escalation," Thomas said. "It seems quite counterproductive to step into a situation, often we're not even present when most of these activities are taking place."

When pressed on whether citations or arrests were legally possible, Thomas said yes, but that it wasn't part of the plan.

"I think that the law allows us to do that, but again, we're going to proceed with caution, make sure that we de-escalate those situations and use our reasonable discretion," Thomas said.

The Denver District Attorney's Office did not directly answer when asked whether it would prosecute cases arising from the ban.

When asked whether signing the order risked provoking the Trump administration, Johnston acknowledged the tension but said residents' needs come first.

"I think that it's a fair question. We have this conversation all the time in the city," Johnston said. "We think our first obligation is to provide high-quality services to our residents and make sure they know exactly what protections are in place for them. I would love nothing more than to go back to the day-to-day operations of just running the city."

Denver's order is not the first of its kind. Similar measures have been enacted in Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle and Boston, among other cities.

Denver City Council is also separately considering an ordinance that would ban all law enforcement officers, including federal agents, from wearing face coverings or masks while conducting arrests, detentions, or interrogations in the city. Johnston said he plans to sign it if it passes the council.

Robinson noted the mask measure may actually prove enforceable because it applies to all law enforcement rather than targeting immigration agents specifically.