ACLU: Garfield County Reporting Domestic Violence Victims To ICE

GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) - The Colorado American Civil Liberties Union says policies within the Garfield County sheriff's office have resulted in domestic violence victims inadvertently being reported to immigration officials.

ACLU attorney Rebecca Wallace said Tuesday that she's documented cases where alleged victims faced deportation after calling police for help. At issue is the sheriff's department's policy of reporting domestic violence suspects at the time of arrest, not conviction. Wallace says in at least one case a woman accused of domestic violence had been defending herself against her attacker and eventually had charges dropped.

The 2006 Colorado Senate Bill 90 requires law enforcement report suspected illegal immigrants to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, but excludes domestic violence.

The sheriff's office issued a statement maintaining that it is following the law and accused the ACLU of making "slanderous accusations."

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)