Editor’s note: A previous version of the story incorrectly stated that the vote linked to the memorandum of understanding failed on a 6-3 vote. The vote failed 6-4, and the story incorrectly said that Councilmember Curtis Gardner was absent from the vote. Gardner voted for the measure remotely. We apologize for the error.
AURORA | Aurora’s city council rejected an updated agreement that outlined how local police would respond to calls at the federal immigration detention facility in the city, citing concerning conditions at the facility and a lack of transparency and accountability from federal immigration officials.
On Monday, after a two-week delay and vocal opposition at a hearing, the council voted 6-4 to reject the agreement. Councilmembers Françoise Bergan, Curtis Gardner, Stephanie Hancock and Angela Lawson voted in favor of the pact.
The proposed memorandum of understanding, or MOU, between the Aurora Police Department and the privately operated ICE detention center, run by Florida-based GEO Group, attempted to clarify when and how officers would respond to incidents ranging from detainee escapes to sexual assault allegations at the facility.
The GEO ICE facility has been the center of controversy and allegations of mistreatment of prisoners for years. Scrutiny by members of Congress and local activists has accelerated since the re-election of President Donald Trump and his mass-deportation policies.
Aurora officials sought to update the MOU with the GEO facility after a 2025 incident in which two detainees escaped the Aurora ICE Processing Center during a power outage, sparking a public dispute between federal officials and local police.
At the time, officials with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement blamed Aurora police for failing to respond quickly to the escape of two detainees. Aurora police leaders pushed back, saying they were not notified until hours after the escape and therefore the report did not meet the criteria for an urgent response under the existing agreement.
Police officials have said the revised agreement is intended to eliminate confusion. However, concerns about the actions of federal immigration officers and conditions of the facility led a majority of council to be wary of agreeing to a new MOU with ICE.
City Attorney Pete Schulte told the Sentinel that the current MOU is still in effect and does not have an expiration date, though the council could decide to repeal that agreement as well.
“Moving forward, the Aurora Police Department will answer calls for service at the facility as it would with any other call for service,” Schulte said in a statement.
During Monday’s meeting, Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain said the intent of the updated MOU was not to support ICE or immigration operations, which is restricted under state law, but to promote public safety.
“All this would do is, if there’s an event where someone is victimized or mistreated, and there is a crime committed, we will support and make sure that crime is investigated,” Chamberlain said.
Chamberlain said the facility detains some people with violent criminal histories and cited numbers given to him by the ICE facility director that the GEO center is holding around 1,000 people, two-thirds of which have a criminal history of some kind.
Councilmember Gianina Horton said she didn’t believe that data was accurate.
Earlier this year, the GEO facility’s capacity increased to hold 1,530 people. Detention statistics available on the ICE website report that as of April 2 the facility is holding 1,260 people, 309 of whom ICE labels as criminals.
Horton took issue with the lack of information in the MOU, which she said didn’t have the level of detail she was looking for, especially considering the facility’s history of being “untrustworthy.”
“APD has had more robust conversations with the GEO detention center than anyone else, including the elected officials that have oversight jurisdiction of the facility,” Horton said.
Councilmember Allison Coombs said she didn’t approve of the way the MOU categorized people as criminal regardless of whether they had committed a low-level misdemeanor or a violent felony. She also called out the conditions at the facility, saying they should be challenged even if the city doesn’t have authority over the site.
“I think we, as a council and as a city, should be doing everything in our power to stop the situations and conditions that the community has presented from happening,” Coombs said.
The MOU faced significant opposition from members of the public, who raised similar concerns during public comment as the council. In addition to the transparency and accountability issues, commenters said the agreement would further hurt the community’s perception of local police.
After the council’s vote, audience members erupted into applause.
If you entered this country illegally, you are a criminal.
Opposition to federal policy is a foolish reason to leave the Police without guidance in addressing matters which they will have to address. I know oposition to ICE is a matter of orthodoxy to the democrat cause, but this does not oppose ICE, it hanstrings and therefore endangers the Police and of course residents near the facility when there is an escape. This is political petulance taken to a ridiculous end. It is immaturity.