Delaney Hall, a former halfway house in Newark, has been quietly converted into a massive ICE detention center—without a certificate of occupancy, with electrical code violations, and in defiance of local permitting laws.

Mayor Ras Baraka and Newark city officials are right to challenge this facility in court. No one, especially not a private prison corporation like GEO Group, should be allowed to detain people without full compliance with local safety and building regulations.

This isn’t just a fight about immigration. It’s about legal oversight, public accountability, and respect for local authority. ICE and GEO Group must not be allowed to bypass Newark’s laws to detain people behind closed gates.

We call on the federal court to immediately grant the city’s request to block the opening of Delaney Hall until every legal requirement is fully met. Newark’s safety, rights, and rule of law are on the line.

Photo: AP Seth Wenig