Judge blocks DHS policy requiring lawmakers to give notice to visit ICE facilities for now, siding with Colorado congressmen
A federal judge in Washington, D.C., issued an order on Monday blocking a Department of Homeland Security policy requiring lawmakers to give the agency a week's notice of planned visits to immigration detention facilities.
The order supported over a dozen members of Congress — including two from Colorado — in their lawsuit over congressional access and oversight of those facilities.
The lawsuit alleged the Trump administration had blocked attempts by lawmakers to enter Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers and sought to delay visits and inspections of the facilities.
The lawsuit focused, in part, on a U.S. Department of Homeland Security and ICE policy regarding visitation notice by members of Congress seeking to visit these facilities. On Monday, Jia Cobb, U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia, reaffirmed her December 2025 ruling, saying the DHS policy requiring seven days' notice before entering facilities effectively denied the Congress members access to the facilities, causing the members "irreparable harm."
"The Court previously found that the policy imposes irreparable harm upon the Plaintiffs in denying them the ability to carry out timely oversight of covered facilities," she wrote in her Feb. 2 order. "If anything, the strength of that finding has become greater over the intervening weeks, given that ICE's enforcement and detention practices have become the focus of intense national and congressional interest. And as before, the public interest and the balance of equitable considerations weigh strongly in favor of granting Plaintiffs the limited preliminary relief of a temporary restraining order."
In January, DHS quietly issued a new internal memorandum reinstating a notice requirement under a different funding authority. That change came to light only after several lawmakers — including Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota — were turned away from a detention center in Minnesota despite presenting a valid court order allowing access.
"The Court concludes that Plaintiffs have demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits," Cobb wrote, adding that the lawmakers would suffer "irreparable harm" if they continued to be blocked from timely oversight visits.
The temporary restraining order lasts 14 days, though it could be extended as the case proceeds. During that period, DHS and ICE are barred from enforcing any advance notice requirement against the 13 plaintiff lawmakers.
The ruling does not resolve the broader legal question of whether DHS can ever impose notice requirements on congressional visits. That issue will be addressed in further briefing and likely a hearing on whether to issue a longer-term preliminary injunction.
Democratic Reps. Jason Crow and Joe Neguse — whose districts include Aurora and Boulder, respectively — joined 11 other members of Congress in suing DHS, ICE, and their respective directors, Todd Lyons and Kristi Noem.
"The Court's decision today to grant a temporary restraining order against ICE's unlawful effort to obstruct congressional oversight is a victory for the American people. We will keep fighting to ensure the rule of law prevails," Neguse said in a statement on Monday.
Crow also celebrated the ruling, which temporarily restores members of Congress's right to visit federal detention facilities unannounced.
"Following the law is not optional," Crow said. "2025 was the deadliest year at federal immigration facilities in decades. The Trump administration is using billions of taxpayer dollars to carry out a violent and lawless immigration agenda with virtually no transparency or accountability. Today's ruling was another victory on behalf of oversight and work to hold this administration accountable."
CBS News reported last month that over the past two decades, 2025 was the deadliest year for ICE detainees, with at least 30 people dying in detention centers.
Spokespeople for DHS and ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.