Politics Feb 25, 2026 2:43 PM EDT WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled against a private prison company facing a lawsuit alleging immigration detainees were forced to work and paid only $1 a day in Colorado. The unanimous ruling is a procedural defeat for the GEO Group, but it's not a final decision. The company is fighting a lawsuit from 2014 alleging detainees in Aurora had to perform unpaid janitorial work and other jobs for little pay to supplement meager meals. READ MORE: Trump administration using no-bid contracts, boosting big firms, to get more ICE detention beds GEO defended its practices and argued that the case should be tossed out because it's immune from lawsuits as a government contractor. After a judge disagreed, the company asked the Supreme Court to allow it to quickly appeal the ruling. But the justices refused. Educate your inbox Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else. The Florida-based GEO Group is one of the top private detention providers in the country, with management or ownership of about 77,000 beds at 98 facilities. Its contracts include a new federal immigration detention center where Newark, New Jersey, Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested at a protest in May 2025, before the case against the Democrat was dropped. Similar lawsuits have been brought on behalf of immigration detainees elsewhere, including a case in Washington state, where the company was ordered to pay more than $23 million. A free press is a cornerstone of a healthy democracy. Support trusted journalism and civil dialogue. Left: The U.S. Supreme Court, where justices are expected to issue opinions in pending cases, in Washington on Feb. 25, 2026. Photo by Kevin Lamarque/ Reuters Fact-checking Trump's State of the Union claims on the economy, immigration and crime By PolitiFact staff WATCH: Whistleblower and former ICE attorney calls agent training 'deficient, defective and broke' By Tim McPhillips Supreme Court agrees to hear arguments from oil and gas companies trying to block climate change lawsuits By Lindsay Whitehurst, Associated Press What to know about the Supreme Court ruling on Trump's tariffs By Matt Sedensky, Associated Press Some states push back on Trump recruiting local officers to aid immigration enforcement By David A. Lieb, Brian Witte, Associated Press ICE chief ordered to appear in court to explain why detainees have been denied due process By Mike Catalini, Steve Karnowski, Associated Press 'Alligator Alcatraz' detainees given color-coded uniforms, 5:30 a.m. breakfast and strict rules By Mike Schneider, Associated Press immigrant detention prison labor private prisons supreme court