Activists fear Union County jail could become new migrant detention center

Yahoo

27-03-2025

Union County officials are proposing to sell the building that contains the county jail, which has been largely empty for years. (Photo by New Jersey Monitor)
As federal immigration officials are eyeing New Jersey as a site to expand detention capacity, immigration advocates say they fear Union County's proposal to sell its jail could result in the facility becoming a new migrant detention center.
The Union County Board of Commissioners will vote Thursday night on two measures that would allow the county to take steps to sell the jail property because it is 'no longer needed for public use.' The county closed most operations at the jail in 2021.
While the agenda for Thursday's meeting doesn't explicitly say anything about immigration detention, Amy Torres, director of the New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice, said it's 'hard to think of anyone who would want to buy a facility of that size, nor renovate a facility of that size, except for a private prison corporation.'
Union County Manager Edward Oatman said in a statement to the New Jersey Monitor that the resolution proposing the sale of the county lock-up 'generated important discussion — and unfortunately, some misunderstanding — about its purpose.' Oatman stressed the resolution would merely authorize the county to issue a request for proposals — the first step in a lengthy process that includes public input.
'While we cannot control who submits proposals, we will limit acceptable uses, in accordance with state law. If any proposals involve continued use as a correctional facility, it will be strictly confined to housing individuals involved in the criminal justice system — such as those facing charges. No other uses of that nature will be permitted,' he said.
Torres said the Laken Riley Act — which requires federal officers to detain migrants accused but not yet convicted of crimes ranging from shoplifting to assault — could lead to some immigrants being labeled criminals without any due process. Congress approved the bill in January, and President Donald Trump signed it into law.
'I don't want to hear that this is only for criminals because we know that ICE has been profiling people, labeling them violent criminals when they're not and when they've proven not to be, and deporting them anyway or detaining them indefinitely,' she said.
The news of the jail's potential sale comes on the heels of federal officials announcing plans for a massive, privately run immigrant detention center at Delaney Hall in Newark. Last year, the American Civil Liberties Union obtained documents that showed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was eyeing another location in Trenton as a potential detention center.
Federal officials under both the Trump and Biden administrations have said North Jersey is a prime location to house immigrant detainees because of its proximity to Newark's airport and immigration courts in Manhattan.
Immigration enforcement efforts have ramped up across the country as Trump moves to carry out his campaign promise of mass deportation of undocumented immigrants. According to ICE, officials made more than 32,000 enforcement-related arrests between Trump's second inauguration and March 13.
The Union County jail is a roughly 1,000-bed facility located in the heart of Elizabeth. It has been largely empty since 2021, when the county approved closing it as a cost-saving move (it said savings would amount to $103 million over five years).
A 2021 state law bars public entities from entering into contracts to house immigrant detainees, but a provision of the law that also barred private entities from doing so has been ruled unconstitutional. The state has appealed the ruling, and the appeal is scheduled to be heard by an appellate court in about a month.
Oatman said that as county manager, he's looking for ways to generate 'meaningful tax relief — potentially upwards of $100 million — while ensuring any future use of the property aligns with the needs and values of our community.'
He said he hopes the request attracts a diverse group of bidders from a variety of industries. He also noted that demolishing the facility would cost tens of millions of dollars, and repurposing it could cost millions per floor.
Torres said it's unlikely that a non-prison operator would be interested in buying the Union County jail. Commissioners should be looking at how to repurpose it for the community instead of 'rolling out the red carpet for private prison corporations,' she said.
'In an imaginary world, it can be bought by anyone and turned into anything, but we don't live in an imaginary world, we live in reality. And the reality is that ICE and private prison companies are looking to score additional sites for immigration detention,' she said.
Torres said the possible unveiling of yet another new detention center in New Jersey — there's an existing immigrant jail in Elizabeth — would be detrimental to the diverse community, where over a third of residents are immigrants. The city doesn't want to be known as the immigrant detention capital of America, she added.
'This isn't deep south Florida. This is New Jersey, and I feel like that is not something that is reflective of our values of the state,' Torres said. 'I hope it's not something that's reflective of the values of Union County, but I guess maybe it is.'
The state Attorney General's Office did not return a request for comment. It has previously said that private detention centers 'threaten the public health and safety of New Jerseyans, including when used for immigration purposes.'