This summer, a municipal judge in Lone Tree improperly warned a defendant that the court would report him to federal immigration authorities; This was unusual behavior that drew condemnation from immigrant rights groups and defense attorneys.

On July 18, Judge Lou Gresh was advising a person accused of shoplifting when he said “since shoplifting is a deportable offense under federal law, we report all illegal immigrants to ICE for deportation,” according to court records reviewed by The Denver Post .

Defense attorney Michelle Ahronovitz, who was in the courtroom that day, said she looked around, unsure if she had heard the judge correctly. He said he had never heard a judge say those words from the bench in his career.

“There was definitely some implicit bias and implicit racism present,” he said in an interview. “This was absolutely one of the scariest municipal court experiences I have had as an attorney.”

Gresh, through a city spokesman, declined to be interviewed for this story.

In a statement, city officials said Lone Tree did not contact immigration authorities about its municipal court defendants. City spokeswoman Melissa Gallegos said the judge that day may have misspoke when she cited the city’s recommendation that all defendants understand that convictions or guilty pleas could have consequences on their immigration status.

Nicole Cervera Loy, policy and campaigns manager Colorado Immigrant Rights CoalitionHe called the judge’s language a “gross abuse of judicial power” and said the city should immediately investigate the judge’s conduct.

“The actions taken were deeply inappropriate and undermined the justice system,” Loy said. “The courtroom should not be a place where people are afraid or shy, but a place where justice is served.”

Multiple judges and defense attorneys told The Post they had not heard judges say they would report defendants in their courtrooms to immigration authorities.