Lawsuit over inmate holds for ICE is dismissed

A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit that challenged the Coconino County sheriff’s policy of holding undocumented inmates in jail for an extended time to allow ICE agents to pick them up.

U.S. District Court Judge David G. Campbell on Monday dismissed the class-action lawsuit brought by the ACLU against Coconino County Sheriff James Driscoll and Jail Cmdr. Matthew Figueroa for their role in holding Guillermo Tenorio-Serrano in jail for Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, according to a statement released by the Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday.

Tenorio-Serrano was arrested Dec. 11 by the Arizona Department of Public Safety for extreme DUI, according to the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office. He was booked into the Coconino County Detention Facility, the Sheriff ’s Office statement said.

The next day, ICE officials sent a notice to the Sheriff ’s Office with a war-

rant and seeking an immigration detainer to hold Tenorio-Serrano, stating there was ”probable cause” to suggest the man was an undocumented immigrant who qualified for deportation, the Sheriff’s Office said.

The detainer requested the office hold Tenorio-Serrano for no more than 48 hours beyond the time he would otherwise qualify for release under the state charge, in order for ICE officers to take custody of him, according to the Sheriff’s Office statement.

The American Civil Liberties Union filed the lawsuit in response to the Sheriff’s Office policy of cooperating with such detainer requests by holding pretrial detainees for the extended period on constitutional grounds.

Campbell last month ruled in favor of the county, saying the ACLU’s suit did not have “a fair chance of success on the merits,” according to the Sheriff ’s Office statement and its law firm. Campbell also rejected an ACLU request for an injunction to prevent Tenorio-Serrano’s release to ICE officials.

Campbell said doing so would interfere with Driscoll’s judgment as an elected official and with the Arizona Legislature’s determination that the state should cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.

The ACLU later moved to dismiss the suit. On Monday, Campbell formally did so.

The Sheriff’s Office legal team stated that the office will continue to cooperate with federal authorities and honor ICE detainer requests.

ACLU officials could not be reached for comment.