Family visits have resumed at an immigration detention facility in Newark, New Jersey, following two consecutive nights of activist arrests and escalating tensions with law enforcement officials.
Governor Mikie Sherrill announced Sunday that relatives will be permitted to visit detainees at Delaney Hall under police escort. This development came hours after Newark Mayor Ras Baraka established a nighttime curfew covering a half-mile radius around the facility.
The Democratic governor had directed state police to assume control of the area surrounding the detention center on Friday, responding to days of heated confrontations between demonstrators and federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. State Attorney General Jennifer Davenport confirmed during a Sunday press conference that law enforcement has now secured a “broader area than just outside Delaney Hall” citing safety concerns.
The ongoing unrest presents a significant challenge for Sherrill’s administration, which seeks to avoid providing justification for expanded federal agent deployment throughout New Jersey. President Donald Trump, who returned to office in January 2025, has pointed to immigration enforcement protests as justification for dispatching federal law enforcement personnel to American cities.
“ICE is not a law enforcement agency we want on our streets in any way,” Sherrill stated to reporters Sunday.
The governor also reiterated her earlier appeal for demonstrators to “bring the temperature down” through peaceful conduct. According to state police, three individuals were taken into custody Saturday evening during protests, adding to the six protesters detained Friday.
A Department of Homeland Security representative, the federal agency responsible for overseeing immigration enforcement and Delaney Hall operations, stated Sunday that activities will “continue as normal.”
The facility houses 1,000 beds and operates under private company Geo Group management on behalf of ICE. Immigration advocates, Sherrill, and other Democratic officials have demanded the facility’s closure, characterizing it as a mismanaged location with inhumane treatment conditions.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, issued a statement Sunday morning following his facility visit alongside three New Jersey congressional delegation members. “The situation is unacceptable,” Jeffries declared. “Delaney Hall must be shut down immediately.”
On Saturday, Sherrill attributed heightened protest tensions to outside agitators from other states, noting that most demonstrators “want to be there peacefully.”
New Jersey Democratic Senator Andy Kim characterized the current tension level surrounding the ICE protests as extraordinary.
“I’ve not seen my state with this level of precariousness through my entire time in elected office,” Kim stated during his Sunday appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union” program.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, responsible for national airport security oversight, issued a Thursday warning threatening to reduce international traveler processing at Newark Liberty International Airport due to insufficient local law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration officials. The airport serves as a primary entry point to New York City.
Kim dismissed the airport closure concept as illogical. “That would be just shooting ourselves in the foot,” he commented regarding international travel restrictions.
