Proposed Law Would Ban ICE Detention in New Jersey

A New Jersey assemblyman introduced a bill this week that would ban the federal government from holding immigrants in private and local jails in the state.

Immigration & Customs Enforcement's detention of people with immigration violations in four New Jersey facilities has been a recurring source of tension. A group of immigrant detainees at the Bergen County jail recently went on hunger strike, prompting regular protests. And Hudson County's decision last month to extend the ICE detention contract at its jail after previously stating they'd end the agreement led to an outpouring of criticism.

Democratic Assemblyman Gordon Johnson's bill wouldn't immediately end these contracts, but would forbid public and private entities from extending them or entering into new ones. Essex County's ICE contract doesn't expire until 2026, and Hudson's goes til 2030. Bergen County's agreement is open-ended. The private prison company CoreCivic has an ICE contract to house detainees in Elizabeth that expires in 2027.