ICE opens Newark detention center amid lawsuit over permits, inspections

Federal immigration officials have started housing detained migrants in a Newark detention center amid an ongoing lawsuit over whether authorities have obtained the proper permits to operate the facility, according to a government spokesperson. 

A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesperson told the New Jersey Globe in a statement that ICE started housing detainees in the Newark-located Delaney Hall on May 1. The 1,000-bed facility was initially slated to open in June, and the spokesperson did not say how many detainees were currently housed in Delaney Hall. 

ICE signed a 15-year Delaney Hall contract with GEO Group, a private prison company that owns the detention facility. The contract is expected to be worth about $60 million a year. Immigration officials across the country are working to increase their capacity to fulfill President Donald Trump’s promises of mass deportations. 

The quick opening of Delaney Hall comes as the city of Newark sues GEO Group, alleging the company hasn’t obtained the proper permits to operate Delaney Hall. 

Officials at Delaney Hall initially turned away city inspectors, but authorities scheduled inspections a couple of weeks after the lawsuit was filed. In a telephone conference on May 1, an attorney for Newark told a federal judge that inspections found a couple of dozen safety issues related to plumbing, fire codes, and electricity. The severity of the violations is not clear—an attorney for GEO Group told the judge the company had received the inspection report.

But the most significant current disagreement appears to be over whether the facility needs a new certificate of continued occupancy, which is typically required for buildings after a change in tenancy. Geoffrey Brounell, an attorney for GEO Group, told a judge the company doesn’t believe a new certificate is needed. Arguments haven’t been made about the issue before a judge.

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, a Democratic candidate for governor, will host a Monday morning press conference disavowing the opening of Delaney Hall. Newark has been at the forefront of the struggle between Trump’s deportation efforts and immigrant activists. Just days into the second Trump term, ICE agents raided a fish market, detaining both U.S. citizens and undocumented immigrants in the process.

In a March rally, the mayor promised to use his power to keep Delaney Hall from opening.

“This is what we do in our community in Newark, because this is a city of immigrants,” Baraka said at the rally. “It has always been a city of immigrants, and a city of working people, and a port city trying to find a journey towards democracy.”

The Trump administration has also gotten involved in the lawsuit, asking the judge to dismiss the “aggressive” and “legally unjustified” lawsuit. 

In a separate but potentially relevant lawsuit, a federal appeals court heard arguments last week over whether New Jersey is allowed to bar immigrant detention centers operated by private prison companies. Activists gathered outside a Philadelphia courthouse during the hearing to voice support for immigrants, according to the New Jersey Monitor.