Press Releases

In 2025, without authorization from the Nevada Legislature, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) entered into an agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that purports to let LVMPD assist with federal immigration enforcement. This “287(g) agreement” provides that, at ICE’s request, LVMPD will continue detaining a person after they are supposed to be released from criminal custody to make it easier for ICE to pick them up. That is exactly what happened to Sergio Morais-Hechavarria: although a court had ordered him to be released to an inpatient treatment program, LVMPD continued detaining him for another two months at ICE’s behest. Mr. Morais-Hechavarria and the ACLU of Nevada filed a lawsuit challenging LVMPD’s authority to enter into the 287(g) agreement and to detain people for ICE after their criminal custody ends. The district court dismissed the case, and the ACLU’s State Supreme Court Initiative and ACLU of Nevada have appealed to the Nevada Supreme Court.

On September 21, 2026, the ACLU, ACLU of Nevada and the Innocence Project filed an amicus brief in the District of Nevada in support of Jason Killinger, a man wrongfully arrested after police relied on an incorrect result from facial recognition technology.

Hosts Shereen Marisol Meraji and Matthew Beat give a glimpse into the ACLU’s new podcast covering some of the most influential court cases in history.