Through my quarter century working in the sheriff’s office, I don’t recall witnessing a more polarizing issue than the current debate on the role of sheriffs as it relates to enforcement of immigration law. Multiple times a week, I’m asked why we are cooperating with federal immigration officials or why we are not. Throughout the legislative session, Colorado sheriffs have been placed in between competing Democratic- and Republican-sponsored bills at the Capitol.

On one side, bills have been introduced demanding that sheriffs actively resist and obstruct federal immigration officers from doing their job of enforcing our nation’s immigration laws. On the other side, bills have been introduced demanding that local sheriffs become an arm of the federal government’s immigration authorities, threatening legal actions against sheriffs who refuse to do so.

Both positions are not simply unwise policy, but counter to the rule of law that our nation was founded upon. Our founders intended for our national and state governments to have different roles and responsibilities. The national government was not established to commandeer state governments to fulfill its duties and obligations. At the same time, both levels of government were expected to work in cooperation and not obstruct the other from fulfilling their respective duties.

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