New Jersey's attorney general has taken legal action against the private company running the Delaney Hall Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center, seeking to force it to allow health officials access to the facility amid allegations of "inhumane and unsanitary conditions."
Lawsuit Filed Over Access
On Tuesday, Attorney General Jennifer Davenport filed a lawsuit in state superior court in Newark against the GEO Group, the private operator of the facility. The suit demands that the New Jersey Department of Health be granted full access to conduct inspections. This move comes after more than 10 days of a hunger and labor strike by detainees protesting conditions inside the facility, which has also sparked demonstrations outside that turned violent after dark.
Governor Mikie Sherrill and other elected officials visited Delaney Hall over the Memorial Day weekend after the strike began. However, a statement from Davenport's office said the GEO Group "refused to respond to demands by the governor, elected officials, and protesters for full transparency into conditions at Delaney Hall."
Last Thursday, state health inspectors were allowed a limited inspection but were barred from examining crucial areas such as the medical unit, sleeping quarters, bathing areas, and toilets. "If the GEO Group – with a $1bn government contract – has nothing to hide and the conditions inside Delaney Hall are as safe and as sanitary as this private corporation and the Trump Administration claim, then there is no legitimate reason why my health inspectors are being kept from full access throughout the building," Sherrill said in a statement.
Protests and Political Pressure
The Democratic governor has faced criticism from ICE protesters, who accuse her of not doing enough to gain access to Delaney Hall. Last weekend, she sent state police to guard the facility, leading to violent clashes with some protesters after federal ICE officers had also become violent with demonstrators.
On Tuesday, as the lawsuit was filed, activists protested outside Davenport's office in Newark, complaining about how the attorney general, the governor, and state authorities have handled the controversy.
Comment has been requested from the GEO Group, the defendant in the lawsuit. The plaintiff is Raynard Washington, commissioner for the New Jersey Department of Health.
