'Bogus claims': Blue city mayor under fire for trying to halt reopening of ICE facility

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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin joins 'Fox & Friends' to discuss the commonwealth's effort to work with the Trump administration to get violent illegal immigrants off the streets and his reaction to President Trump's tariff pause. 

The City of Newark and its Democratic mayor are facing pushback after filing a legal complaint against Immigration and Customs Enforcement for reopening a building to prep illegal immigrants for deportation without "following proper building safety protocols."

Mayor Ras Baraka said in a statement that using the building, Delaney Hall, for processing people in the country illegally goes against state and local law, leading the city to file a lawsuit in the Essex County Superior Court at the end of March.

"The City was informed that construction work is taking place in the building without required permits," the mayor stated. "The Department of Engineering imposed a stop work order to halt any and all construction on the site today. Two ICE officials and the GEO Group facility director on site were made aware of the violations."

"In addition, ICE has failed to apply for construction permits, continued certificates of occupancy, and requests to change the building’s use," he added. Delaney Hall has just under 1,200 beds, according to USA Today.

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Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem watches a vehicle scan during a tour of the San Ysidro Port of Entry, in San Diego, March 16, 2025. (Alex Brandon/Pool via Reuters)

"The agreement between ICE and the GEO Group to use Delaney Hall with the intention of incarcerating and holding immigrants slated for deportation does not supersede the ordinances and procedures legislated by the City of Newark and the State of New Jersey." the Democrat continued. "As I have stated in the past, without compliance with requirements, Delaney Hall cannot lawfully open. We will not tolerate federal attempts to ignore or evade our laws and statutes, which apply to everyone."

The contractor who runs Delaney Hall, the GEO Group, said this is a political tactic and could put jobs and community safety "in jeopardy."

"The attempt by local and state officials to stop the opening of a lawful federal immigration processing center at the Delaney Hall facility in Newark is another unfortunate example of a politicized campaign by sanctuary city and open borders politicians in New Jersey to interfere with the federal government’s efforts to arrest, detain, and deport dangerous criminal illegal aliens in accordance with established federal law," a spokesperson for the group told Fox News Digital.

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Newark Mayor Ras Baraka speaks after the Democratic gubernatorial debate at Rider University in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, on Feb. 2, 2025. (AP photo/Mike Catalini)

"These politically motivated tactics threaten both public safety and the local economy and are based on bogus claims about the Delaney Hall facility, which previously operated as a federal immigration processing center for six years under President Obama’s administration, without opposition from local political leaders," the statement continued.

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Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not respond in time for publication.

Baraka, who's running for governor, criticized an ICE raid in the city in January, which led to the arrest of eight individuals.

"The problem with this is that none of these people were rapists, or murderers or criminals," Baraka said at the time. "The problem with it is that ICE went in there without a warrant." 

"We don't want an ICE detention in Newark. What we are concerned about is the erosion of the Constitution," he added.

GOP CANDIDATE RIPS BLUE STATE DIRECTIVE MEDDLING IN POLICE FORCE'S COOPERATION WITH ICE: 'HANDCUFFED'

Republican gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli is joined by his wife Melinda as he speaks during a news conference, Nov. 12, 2021, in Raritan, New Jersey. (AP )

New Jersey state laws on illegal immigrants have continued to spark pushback among Republicans, as state police were directed not to pay attention to warrants requested by the federal government for immigration enforcement purposes, according to an email obtained by Jack Ciattarelli's gubernatorial campaign and reviewed by Fox News Digital.

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"The fact that my campaign received this email is evidence that brave and courageous law enforcement officers throughout New Jersey are angry about being handcuffed by liberal Democrat policies in Trenton, making our communities less safe," Ciattarelli, a Republican, said in a statement.

Fox News' Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.

Cameron Arcand is a politics writer at Fox News Digital in Washington D.C. Story tips can be sent to [email protected] and on Twitter: @cameron_arcand 

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