In an October 3 article by reporter Lynn Bartels, the Rocky Mountain News uncritically reported a false claim by John Marshall, campaign manager for Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob Beauprez, that the city of Denver has so-called “sanctuary” policies for illegal immigrants. A Colorado law enacted May 1 prohibits such “sanctuary” policies, which it defines as “local government ordinances or policies that prohibit local officials, including peace officers, from communicating or cooperating with federal officials with regard to the immigration status of any person within the state.” Additionally, a News article from June 11 noted that while some local law enforcement officials in Colorado fail to turn in immigrants, “it has nothing to do with any sanctuary policy.” The same News article also reported that an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (known as BICE, or ICE) spokesman said he knows of “no Colorado city that has a policy against calling ICE.”

As Colorado Media Matters previously noted (see here, here, here, here, here, and here), several Colorado media figures and Republican officeholders and candidates -- including Beauprez -- have sought to perpetuate the myth that Denver or other Colorado cities are “sanctuary” cities.

As Colorado Media Matters has noted, the Denver Police Operations Manual states, “Generally, officers will not detain, arrest or take enforcement action against a person solely because he/she is suspected of being an undocumented immigrant.” However, the manual adds that “when a suspect believed to be an undocumented immigrant is arrested for other charges, a 'Refer to Immigration' charge will be added to the original charges. Sheriff's Department personnel will then notify the B.I.C.E. authorities according to their procedures.”

Beyond state and city policy, the June 11 News article reported that the newspaper's investigation “found that some local law-enforcement officials indeed fail to turn in immigrants, including some criminals they know are here illegally. But it has nothing to do with any sanctuary policy.” The News added that local law enforcement officials in Colorado “say they know ICE lacks the people or places to deal with them, a message ICE officials have delivered personally. And local jails are too full to hold them while deportation orders are processed.”

In the News article containing Marshall's false claim, Marshall was responding to a demand that Beauprez disclose whether his “bank or development company ever employed illegal immigrants or contracted with firms that did.” According to the article, Marshall “noted steps Beauprez has taken in Congress regarding illegal immigration”:

“Since you ask about Bob Beauprez's record, here are a few facts,” Marshall said.

“Bob Beauprez has voted repeatedly to secure our border. Bob Beauprez has voted repeatedly to ban sanctuary city policies, like Denver's. Bob Beauprez has voted to require proof of citizenship prior to voting.”

On June 6, Beauprez voted in favor of an amendment to H.R. 5441, the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, that sought to deny homeland security funding to cities and states with so-called “sanctuary” policies. The amendment, sponsored by Rep. Steve King (R-IA), “prevents [s]tate and local governments who refuse to share information with Federal immigration authorities by adopting sanctuary policies from getting Federal funds.” King's amendment passed the House by a vote of 218 to 179. According to King's testimony on the House floor:

KING: There are some cities and States around the country that have such [sanctuary] laws, and they blatantly encourage illegal immigration. Such laws prohibit law enforcement officials from reporting to the Department of Homeland Security illegal aliens when they are discovered through the normal course of law enforcement practice. Section 642(a) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 makes it illegal for local and State governments to adopt such laws. These laws, known as sanctuary policies, prevent open communication between local and Federal law enforcement and pose a great risk to all American citizens. We cannot risk letting a dangerous criminal walk out of the sanctuaried [sic] city and possibly into our community instead by being deported as the law dictates.

Similar to Marshall's false claim that Denver has “sanctuary city policies,” CNN host Lou Dobbs, during the October 2 broadcast of Lou Dobbs Tonight, incorrectly listed Denver as a “sanctuary city”:

DOBBS: National City, California, the latest town to proclaim itself a sanctuary city. The mayor of National City made the announcement this weekend, over the objection of other town officials. Under this designation, no city funds will be used to enforce federal immigration laws. More than 70 U.S. cities across the nation have now declared themselves to be sanctuary cities, including Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago, New York City, and San Diego.

But, as noted above, Denver has no “sanctuary” policies for illegal immigrants and has never declared itself to be a “sanctuary city.” As Denver mayor John Hickenlooper stated on the September 21 broadcast of KCNC's CBS4 News at 6:30 p.m., “Denver has never been a sanctuary city; however many times you call Denver a sanctuary city, it's not.”

Likewise, a U.S. Congressional Research Service report from 2004 identified “sanctuary cities” as those that have adopted “a 'don't ask-don't tell' policy where they don't require their employees, including law enforcement officers, to report to federal officials aliens who may be illegally present in the country.” The report's March 11, 2004, list of U.S. "[c]ities and counties currently that have sanctuary policies" did not include any in Colorado.

From the October 3 Rocky Mountain News article, “Group puts heat on Beauprez regarding illegals”:

Beauprez's campaign manager, John Marshall, fired back, asking whether the wealthy donors to Clear Peak have disclosed their hiring records.

He also noted steps Beauprez has taken in Congress regarding illegal immigration.

“Since you ask about Bob Beauprez's record, here are a few facts,” Marshall said.

“Bob Beauprez has voted repeatedly to secure our border. Bob Beauprez has voted repeatedly to ban sanctuary city policies, like Denver's. Bob Beauprez has voted to require proof of citizenship prior to voting.

”Bob Beauprez has not plea-bargained with any illegal aliens in order to allow them to avoid deportation as Bill Ritter has."