DENVER (KDVR) — A lawsuit filed against a Mesa County Sheriff’s Office deputy who may have shared information with federal agents that led to a 19-year-old Utah student’s arrest has been dropped.
The case was filed by the Colorado Attorney General’s Office after Mesa County Deputy Andrew Zwinck allegedly shared details of a traffic stop in a group message that included members of Homeland Security Investigations, leading to the detention of Caroline Dias-Goncalves on June 5.
Dias-Goncalves, 19, has no criminal record and was attending the University of Utah on a merit scholarship. In Colorado, local and state law enforcement and peace officers are prevented from aiding federal law enforcement officers with civil immigration efforts, which is what Dias-Goncalves’ arrest would fall under.
“Based on our findings, the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office should not have had any role in the chain of events leading to Miss Dias-Goncalves’s detention, and I regret that this occurred,” Mesa County Sheriff Todd Rowell shared in July. “I apologize to Miss Dias-Goncalves.”
Court records show that on Thursday, Aug. 28, a joint stipulation of dismissal without prejudice was filed in the case. The court record says that on Aug. 22, Zwinck filed a declaration that said he is resigning from the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office as of Tuesday, Sept. 2.
The court record says that “as of that date, he will no longer be employed in any Colorado state or political subdivision law enforcement position.” The record also says that the state statute the lawsuit was filed regarding will no longer apply to Zwinck at that point, since he would no longer be a state agency or political subdivision employee.
On Aug. 5, the Mesa County Board of County Commissioners filed a lawsuit against Gov. Jared Polis and Weiser about the ongoing litigation against Zwinck. According to court records accessed Friday evening, that case is still active and a scheduling conference is set for Oct. 7 in Colorado District Court.
“The filing of this complaint is intended to seek legal clarity regarding the role and responsibilities of local law enforcement under current state law, Senate Bill 25-276, and to protect Mesa County’s legal and financial interests,” the board said in a statement.
The board also said that they believe the matter could have and should have been resolved through cooperation, “rather than being turned into political theater.”
Anthony Sutton is a business strategist and writer with a passion for management, leadership, and entrepreneurship. With years of experience in the corporate world, he shares insights on business growth, strategy, and innovation through management-opleiding.org.
