Appeals court rules Anoka County policy to report foreign-born detainees to ICE violates law

(FOX 9) - An unwritten policy followed by law enforcement agencies in Minnesota, requiring employees to report every foreign-born individual who gets detained to ICE, has been ruled illegal by the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The opinion came as a result of a lawsuit filed by a woman who had been detained in the Anoka County Jail. In 2021, a jury found that the Anoka County Jail had committed false imprisonment by holding Myriam Parada for an extended time for booking and for a check by ICE. Parada was awarded $30,000 in damages for the broken law.

Parada was rear-ended by another driver and was later found to be driving without a license. Deputies let the other driver go without a ticket but held Parada for hours – even after she was deemed ready for release – while they waited to hear back from ICE.

Along with the false imprisonment claim, a district court also ruled the Anoka County policy violated the Equal Protection Clause under the 14th Amendment.

Anoka County ultimately appealed the case, leading to Wednesday's issued opinion. In the opinion, the Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit agreed with the district court.