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Lawsuit for full access
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against GEO Group, the private operator of the Delaney Hall ICE detention center in Newark, seeking “immediate entry” for state health inspectors to conduct a full inspection.
“New Jersey attorney general, city of Newark pursue legal action to get health inspectors into Delaney Hall ICE facility The Department of Homeland Security has denied allegations of poor conditions”
The complaint, filed in Superior Court in Essex County, says the case involves “significant concerns about public health conditions,” including overcrowding, inadequate medical care and hygiene practices, unsanitary food and bathroom conditions, and the “unchecked” spread of communicable diseases such as COVID-19 and the flu.
Raynard Washington, the New Jersey health commissioner, said in a statement that “Any facility housing people in New Jersey must meet basic standards under the law to prevent the spread of disease, keep food and water safe, and minimize health risks.”
The lawsuit asks a judge to order the GEO Group to allow the New Jersey Department of Health access beyond the food service areas, after inspectors were allowed only a limited part of the facility on May 28.
NBC News reported that the city of Newark and state officials are pursuing legal action after DHS denied allegations of poor conditions and called the state’s suit “frivolous.”
DHS denies, protests continue
DHS and ICE officials have denied the allegations and disputed the scope of inspections, with DHS spokesperson Lauren Bis telling NBC News that “ICE is committed to transparency, and Delaney Hall complies with all required state and local laws.”
In the same reporting, Bis said four New Jersey state health representatives completed a one-hour inspection of Delaney Hall’s food service department on Thursday, and she added, “We will continue to grant state and local inspectors’ access to the facility where appropriate.”
Meanwhile, the dispute has played out alongside demonstrations outside Delaney Hall, where Newark Mayor Ras Baraka said the city would expand its efforts to shut down GEO Group rather than federal immigration agencies.
The Hill reported that protests erupted outside the detention center after detainees launched a hunger and labor strike on May 22, and that Sherrill was not allowed inside while lawmakers said detainees were served rotten food and denied essential medical care.
In a separate account, El Diario NY said the political fight intensified after Democratic Sen. Andy Kim was reached by pepper spray during a demonstration in front of Delaney Hall, and Kim said, “Esto nunca se trató de mí.”
What’s at stake next
The legal and political pressure is aimed at changing what happens to Delaney Hall detainees and whether the facility can continue operating, with Newark and New Jersey officials seeking access that would let inspectors examine areas including the medical unit, sleeping areas, and bathing and toileting areas.
“New Jersey alleges 'unsanitary' conditions at migrant facility rocked by protests New Jersey has sued the operator of an immigration detention centre that has become a flashpoint over allegations of inhumane conditions for detainees”
The Hill quoted the complaint’s argument that “Without inspecting these areas, Plaintiff is unable to ascertain whether Defendant is taking sufficient precautions to mitigate the serious and unchecked risk of communicable diseases to both detainees at Delaney Hall and New Jersey’s public at large.”
In parallel, the Washington Examiner reported that Sherrill said the GEO Group “refused to permit Plaintiff [Dr. Raynard E. Washington, the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Health] to inspect any area of Delaney Hall other than the food service areas.”
The Guardian reported that Tuesday’s lawsuit, filed by Jennifer Davenport, asks the state superior court in Newark to order GEO Group to grant the New Jersey department of health full access to conduct inspections, after a limited inspection barred inspectors from crucial areas such as the medical unit, sleeping, bathing and toilet areas.
NBC News also tied the stakes to the facility’s broader controversy, saying the mayor announced Tuesday that the city would continue focusing its efforts on GEO Group and expand its lawsuit to include health and human safety violations as grounds to close the facility.
