In the past two weeks, what little confidence we had in the Geo Group’s ability to manage federal detention centers has been shaken. The private company, headquartered in Florida, has refused to cooperate with state and county health officials concerned about the possibility of a tuberculosis outbreak in the group’s Aurora facility. Police accused a Geo Group employee — enraged by threats and criticism— of deliberately shooting a protester in the foot just outside the Aurora detention center. And an immigrant rights group has alleged the company is denying people inside the facility communication with their families and others by screening mail, denying delivery and delaying correspondence.
All of this comes as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security — under the direction of President Donald Trump — has scaled up a mass deportation effort that doesn’t only target criminals anymore and has begun a public dragnet for anyone with questionable legal status. The administration is expecting to detain so many people that DHS signed a $529 million contract with Geo Group to open a second Colorado facility to lock up 1,188 people in Hudson. The Aurora facility already holds 1,530 people.
We are skeptical, however, that meaningful oversight will come from a federal department that is in complete disarray, having burned through Kristi Noem in 18 months. Now the agency is led by Markwayne Mullin, a man who is refusing to publicly address the fact that under his watch immigration enforcement officers have shot and killed two unarmed people they were trying to detain during roadside stops in separate states.
What little oversight we will get of the Geo facility in Aurora and the new facility proposed for Hudson must come from Congress or from city, county and state officials.
U.S. Rep. Jason Crow has tried for years to hold the Geo Group accountable, writing a bill that actually became law requiring federal detention centers, even when privately owned, to allow members of Congress to tour facilities without giving prior notice. Geo Group still refused to allow Crow into the facility, so the Aurora congressman filed a lawsuit, getting a judicial order to allow him access.
Meanwhile, the Geo Group has refused to work with county and state health officials attempting to ascertain whether a single known case of tuberculosis in the facility this month could trigger a larger outbreak.
“Our priority remains obtaining the cooperation needed to do a communicable disease investigation,” Hope Shuler, a spokeswoman with the Division of Disease Control and Public Health Response, told The Denver Post. “(The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment) has also reassured the facility and federal officials that the information being requested is standard for this type of public health investigation.”
Gov. Jared Polis is attempting to meet with the company’s owners but has so far been unsuccessful.
The Geo Group, which was founded by George Zoley, the current CEO and chairman, did not immediately respond to an email request for an interview or answer questions we posed, including simple policy questions like whether staff in Aurora were trained to de-escalate conflicts or whether they were permitted to bring their personal firearms to work or whether they are provided with weapons while on the job.
Those questions were sparked when an employee of Geo Group lost his cool last week while trying to drive past protesters blocking the entrance into the Aurora detention center. Police accuse the man of pulling out his gun and shooting a protester who was walking away from the conflict.
The woman was hit by a bullet in the back of her foot and was taken to the hospital. She has said in interviews that none of the Geo employees present for the shooting stopped to render aid after she was shot, but Aurora police officers on the scene immediately responded to help and to pursue the shooter. He fled the scene and was later arrested on charges including attempted murder. Zoley has refused to comment on the shooting. Still, the company did put out a statement saying that the employee accused of attempted murder had been “placed on unpaid administrative leave and we will fully cooperate with law enforcement.”
We are grateful that the chief of police in Aurora has handled the case so far with transparency and clarity.
“Violence of any kind will not be tolerated in Aurora. Constitutional rights are a pivotal part of a just society — violence is not,” Aurora police Chief Todd Chamberlain said.
Protests at immigration detention centers are occurring across the nation and are becoming increasingly hostile. On July 4, 2025, an Alvarado, Texas, police officer was shot in the neck by a protester who was part of a group setting off fireworks and harassing detention center employees. . We urge protesters to remain peaceful at their Geo Group vigils, and we encourage them to stay loud and fearless.
We need this federally funded facility to be transparent about the safety, health and conditions for both its employees and its detainees – all of whom are humans deserving of humane conditions and safe working environments. Zoley should be out front personally working with state and local officials on these issues, and he should be explaining how he will improve the training and vetting of staff to prevent a future tragedy.
To send a letter to the editor about this article, submit online or check out our guidelines for how to submit by email or mail.
