Senator Kim Leads NJ Democratic Delegation in Demanding an End to ICE Brutality and Inhumane Detention at Delaney Hall

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Andy Kim (D-N.J.) led members of the New Jersey Democratic Congressional delegation in sending a letter to U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Acting Attorney General (Acting AG) Todd Blanche demanding immediate action to end ICE brutality and inhumane detention at Delaney Hall in Newark.

The letter comes after Senator Kim and members of the New Jersey congressional delegation conducted oversight visits of Delaney Hall over the past week, witnessing the inhumane treatment of detainees inside the for-profit facility, run by the private company GEO Group, and the use of escalatory tactics by ICE agents on the ground. Their visits followed reports of ICE retaliating against those detained inside the facility and hundreds beginning a hunger and labor strike in protest of the inhumane conditions.

“As Members of Congress, we have had the unique opportunity to enter the facility and hear directly from the detainees about the poor conditions at Delaney Hall; the problems are deep, serious, and systemic…While we do not believe Delaney Hall should continue to operate and is unfit to house detainees, as an immediate step, we urge you to require GEO Group to operate the facility in a manner consistent with current law and the U.S. Constitution or to take immediate steps to close the facility,” wrote the Members.

Read the full letter

In the bicameral letter, the Members outlined to the Trump administration:

• Congress Has a Constitutional Right to Conduct Oversight at Detention Facilities
• Conditions at Delaney Hall Detention Facility are Inhumane and Misaligned with ICE’s Own Standards
• ICE’s Use of Escalatory and Retaliatory Tactics in Response to Protest is Unjustifiable
• The Lack of Due Process in Immigration Proceedings Has Contributed Significantly to the Issues at Delaney Hall and Detention Centers Across the Country

The letter outlines specific demands of both Secretary Mullin and Acting AG Blanche to ensure immediate accountability and action to end the use of force by ICE at Delaney Hall, uphold every detainee’s legal right to due process, and to take immediate steps to close the facility if GEO Group continues to not follow the law.

The Members concluded: “We are confident that a failure to address the real and systemic issues in our immigration system and at Delaney Hall Detention Facility will only lead to more pain, outrage, and distrust between the American people and the agencies you lead…If the Delaney Hall Detention Facility cannot be operated in a manner consistent with current law and our Constitution, it should not continue to exist and its operator, GEO Group, should not continue to profit from federal dollars.”