Maryland attorney general sues to halt construction of ICE detention center
Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown filed a lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to prevent the construction of a detention facility in Washington County.
The lawsuit comes after ICE purchased a facility near Hagerstown, prompting concerns from some state lawmakers.
ICE officials previously confirmed to WJZ that the agency purchased the facility.
"These will not be warehouses — they will be very well-structured detention facilities meeting our regular detention standards," an ICE spokesperson said. "Every day, DHS is conducting law enforcement activities across the country to keep Americans safe. It should not come as news that ICE will be making arrests in states across the U.S. and is actively working to expand detention space."
However, the lawsuit alleges that DHS and ICE did not conduct an environmental review of the project nor open the proposal to public comment.
The 28-page filing claims DHS and ICE are moving quickly to implement a nationwide detention agenda and are disregarding federal law.
"We're asking the court to halt construction and operation of this facility," Brown said. "We're asking the court to require a proper environmental review with full public input, and we're asking the court to declare that what the administration did here was unlawful."
Brown posted a video on social media saying that Maryland wasn't involved in the planning process and called for the court to stop construction on the project.
Effort to stop detention center
According to Brown, the lawsuit aims to stop "the Trump administration's unlawful construction of a massive federal detention center."
The lawsuit challenges DHS and ICE's purchase of the warehouse, emphasizing that the major federal project is being "conducted behind closed doors, and without the requisite environmental review, public participation or state consultation."
"DHS purchased this while keeping the State and the public in the dark, spending more than $100 million in federal taxpayer dollars without performing the required environmental review and without giving Maryland or Marylanders any voice in the process," Attorney General Brown said. "We will not allow this Administration to treat laws like suggestions and threaten our people or their communities."
According to the lawsuit, ICE purchased the 54-acre facility in Williamsport on Jan. 16 for $102.4 million. The property was built to serve as a commercial facility and has warehouse space, offices, four toilets and two water fountains.
"According to DHS, the federal government intends to convert this industrial warehouse into a detention center capable of housing 1,500 people at a time," the lawsuit reads. "Williamsport itself is home to just over 2,000 residents – meaning this facility alone would nearly match the town's entire population."
The lawsuit alleges this is part of a nationwide effort by DHS to expand ICE capacity by more than 92,000 beds and hiring 12,000 new law enforcement officers.
Environmental reviews and public input
In the lawsuit, the attorney general says agencies and commercial developers are required to conduct environmental reviews before taking federal actions that impact the environment. This includes assessing environmental impacts and providing opportunities for public feedback.
The lawsuit claims that DHS and ICE violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by buying the facility without conducting environmental assessments.
The lawsuit also claims that DHS and ICE violated the Administrative Procedure Act by not providing an explanation for their decision, failing to consider alternatives and not conducting environmental reviews as they do with other projects.
The lawsuit also raised concerns about the detention center's impact on the air quality, traffic, public health and safety, along with inhumane holding conditions and access to medical care.
"Maryland has a strong commitment to protecting people from inhumane, unsanitary, and dangerous detention," Attorney General Brown said. "Maryland also has a strong commitment to ensuring that community members have a voice in decisions that affect their neighborhoods and the people who live in them."
House Minority Leader Jason Buckel expressed his opposition in a statement, saying Democrats are "trying to politically position Maryland as a sanctuary state, regardless of the consequences."
"[Democrats] complain when the federal government undertakes efforts to construct a modern, safe and hopefully humane facility for federal detainees in a county that already approved the transaction, where substantial sums of taxpayer money have already been spent, and in an area where apparently no local zoning rules or regulations are being violated," he wrote.
The Maryland Freedom Caucus also condemns the lawsuit, calling it an act of political theater.
"Immigration enforcement is a federal responsibility, and local cooperation with federal authorities is both lawful and necessary to protect our citizens. This facility would ensure that individuals who have violated federal immigration law — including those charged with serious crimes — are processed in an orderly and secure manner," the statement said.
Frustration in Washington County
Earlier this month, hundreds of protesters rallied against the facility and disrupted a Washington County Commissioners meeting. Still, the panel voted unanimously to approve a resolution supporting ICE and DHS.
"There's a ton of concern that they're about to start detaining people, an entire town's worth of people," Patrick Dattilio is an organizer for Hagerstown Rapid Response, a group that stands against this detention center. "The idea that our tiny little town is now going to be the center, the epicenter of this is, I think, simply too much for most of the people here."
The fallout over the Washington County facility comes as DHS and ICE recently placed an order for more than 300,000 ready to eat meals. Another bid from DHS is also asking for armed and unarmed guard transportation services.
