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State files lawsuit against private detention operator
New Jersey has taken legal action against GEO Group, the private company running the Delaney Hall immigration detention facility in Newark, accusing it of blocking state health inspectors from full access to the site.
Allegations of unsanitary conditions and restricted access
The lawsuit, filed by the state attorney general, claims the facility has violated health standards, citing reports of unsanitary food preparation and inadequate tuberculosis infection controls. New Jersey officials allege that GEO Group denied inspectors entry on 27 May, citing a high volume of congressional visitors, and later restricted their access on 28 May, preventing them from entering the medical unit.
Federal agency dismisses lawsuit as 'frivolous'
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has called the lawsuit "frivolous," stating that inspectors were granted access to the facility and that Delaney Hall complies with all state and local regulations. DHS confirmed that four New Jersey health department representatives inspected the food service area on 28 May.
"ICE is committed to transparency, and Delaney Hall complies with all required state and local laws."
DHS statement
Governor and advocates demand full transparency
New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat, questioned why GEO Group-holding a $1 billion government contract-would block inspectors if conditions were as safe and sanitary as claimed. "There is no legitimate reason why my health inspectors are being kept from full access," she said.
Immigration advocates report that detainees at Delaney Hall began a hunger strike on 22 May to protest conditions, though DHS has denied the strike, attributing food refusals to demands for culturally specific meals.
"There was only a handful of individuals that was refusing to eat, because they want their ethnic group-or their ethnic right food. The fact is, we're giving them the calories they want. This isn't Holiday Inn."
DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin
Protests and clashes outside the facility
The area around Delaney Hall has become a protest hub, with demonstrations sometimes turning violent. Senator Andy Kim, a New Jersey Democrat, said he was pepper-sprayed during a 25 May visit. Over the weekend, Governor Sherrill condemned "masked individuals" for aggressive actions against police.
Newark has imposed an overnight curfew near the facility. On Monday night, protesters gathered in a designated area before police escorted them away without arrests.
Newark mayor calls for facility's closure
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, a Democrat, has demanded the immediate shutdown of Delaney Hall, announcing a legal strategy to achieve this. "This is a dispute about human lives, about people and the way they're being treated," he said at a press conference on Tuesday. Baraka, who was arrested last year for allegedly attempting to force entry into the facility, pledged continued oversight of police presence around the site.
Broader context of immigration detention controversies
Delaney Hall joins other U.S. immigration detention centres, including Texas's Dilley Detention Centre and New York's 26 Federal Plaza court, as flashpoints in debates over conditions and transparency in immigration enforcement.
