Adams County
“Seeing my dad in person is very important to me. If we could have visits, I could talk to him more about how I’m feeling and make sure he’s okay, too. I worry about him a lot and it makes it worse to not be able to see him.”
– J.B., nine-year-old plaintiff whose dad is jailed in Adams County
In Adams County, Colorado, our lawsuit alleges that government officials and private telecom company, HomeWAV, conspired to profit off of the elimination of family in-person, contact visits at the county jail, which have been replaced with high-cost, for-profit phone and video calls
In E.L. v. Claps, children whose parents are detained at the Adams County Detention Facility argue that they have a fundamental right to familial association under the Colorado Constitution — a right to hug their parents. Parents whose children are detained in Adams County are part of the lawsuit as well.
This is the third lawsuit filed as part of the larger Right 2 Hug Project, that raises novel and vital constitutional questions, including whether the government can ban children and parents from visiting each other if one of them is jailed even though the policy serves no compelling government interest other than making money.
“Paying to talk to [my son] creates a severe financial strain for my family. Because of the cost of calls to Shawn, I struggle to pay for food and medical care […] every dollar I spend on HomeWAV is money I cannot save towards Shawn’s bond to bring him home.”
- Ashlee Trujillo, plaintiff whose 18-year-old son is detained in Adams County
The lawsuit was filed on October 28th, 2025 in state court in Colorado against Sheriff Gene Claps, the Board of County Commissioners of Adams County, Jail Division Chief William Dunning, and carceral telecom company HomeWAV. The plaintiffs are suing to immediately restore contact visitation rights at the jail.
Plaintiffs are represented by Public Justice, Civil Rights Corps, Maxted Law, LLC, Spero Justice Center, Singleton Schreiber, LLP and the National Center for Youth Law.
