NJ law banning immigration detention contracts overturned by US appeals court

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday struck down a New Jersey law that bans operators from contracting with the federal government to run immigration detention centers in the state.

The 2-1 ruling means the private prison firm CoreCivic Corp. can continue to operate the Elizabeth Detention Center. The ruling marked a victory for President Donald Trump’s administration as it continues a crackdown on immigration around the country that has included efforts to expand a network of detention centers in a bid to ramp up deporations of certain immigrants.

“Just as states cannot regulate the federal government itself, they cannot regulate private parties in a way that severely undercuts a federal function,” U.S. Circuit Judge Stephanos Bibas, an appointee of President Trump, wrote.

The law, he said, “interferes with the federal government’s core power to enforce immigration laws.”

The 2021 law signed by New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy barred CoreCivic from renewing its contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The company sued, and a district judge sided with the firm before the state appealed the ruling to the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court.

Attorney General Matthew Platkin, in a social media post, called Tuesday’s ruling disappointing and said states have the right to protect people within their borders. He said the office is considering its next steps.

“As recent events at Delaney Hall underscore, entrusting detention to for-profit companies poses grave risks to health and safety,” he said, referring to recent turmoil over conditions at a 1,000-bed private prison facility that opened in May in Newark.

U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver, a Democrat, was charged by Trump’s Justice Department with assaulting immigration officers at a May 9 visit to the Newark facility. McIver has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, who was also arrested on a trespassing charge at Delaney Hall that was later dropped, has filed a malicious prosecution lawsuit.

CoreCivic, in a statement Tuesday, said that it does not make arrests or enforce immigration laws.

“Our responsibility is to care for each person respectfully and humanely while they receive the legal due process that they are entitled to,” spokesman Ryan Gustin said.

By MARYCLAIRE DALE
Associated Press