Overview

On May 27, 2026, the ACLU of Wyoming filed a lawsuit in Laramie County District Court challenging the legality of the three 287(g) agreements that Sheriff Brian Kozak signed with ICE in May and June 2025. The suit argues the sheriff acted outside his statutory authority — that the power to bind a Wyoming county to a contract belongs to the board of county commissioners, not the sheriff acting unilaterally. This is the first formal legal challenge to Wyoming’s rapid 287(g) expansion.

Key Details

• Filed: May 27, 2026, Laramie County District Court
• Plaintiffs: Juntos (immigrant-advocacy nonprofit), the Unitarian Universalist Church of Cheyenne, and Drew’s Barbershop
• Defendant: Laramie County Sheriff Brian Kozak / Laramie County Sheriff’s Office
• Counsel: ACLU attorney Andrew Malone and local attorney Elizabeth B. Lance
• Three agreements challenged:
  1. Jail Enforcement model — jail staff investigate inmates for immigration violations
  2. Task Force model — deputies act as immigration enforcement agents during policing
  3. The arrangement housing ICE detainees at the county detention center
• Core claims: Kozak (a) failed to submit the agreements to the county clerk, (b) never obtained written approval from the county commission (which never debated or voted on them), and (c) circumvented the Wyoming Administrative Procedures Act, which requires 45-day public notice and a hearing opportunity. The complaint asserts “Wyoming sheriffs do not have limitless authority.”
• Relief sought: declaratory judgment that the agreements are unlawful, a permanent injunction blocking all three, and other equitable relief
• Corroboration: Laramie County Clerk Debra Lee confirmed no 287(g) agreements were ever filed with her office

Context

The suit lands amid Laramie County’s status as Wyoming’s most aggressive ICE partner: 27 certified officers, 300 immigration arrests since October 2025, and the most immigration arrests of any U.S. local/state agency during the week of April 17-23, 2026 (53 arrests). It also follows visible local opposition, including a ~200-student Cheyenne high-school walkout on Feb 13, 2026.

Why This Matters

If the procedural theory prevails, it would not just unwind Laramie County’s agreements but supply a template to challenge the other six Wyoming county and four town 287(g) pacts — most of which were signed by sheriffs and town officials without commission votes or public-comment periods. A win would convert Wyoming’s quiet, sheriff-driven expansion into a contestable, commission-level political question. A loss would entrench the unilateral-sheriff model statewide.

Sources

• Cowboy State Daily: Church, barbershop and ACLU suing Laramie County Sheriff over ICE agreements (May 27, 2026)
• WY Public Media: Wyoming’s ACLU sues Laramie County Sheriff’s Office over ICE agreements (May 27, 2026)
• ACLU of Wyoming: ACLU files challenge to Laramie County’s illegal ICE agreements
• WyoFile: Lawsuit alleges Laramie County’s ICE partnership is unlawful
• WyoFile: Laramie County Sheriff’s Office topped nation in immigration arrests during April operation (May 13, 2026)