Latest news with #AmyTorres
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
ICE Detention Center in Full Revolt as Four Detainees Escape
A revolt at a controversial New Jersey ICE facility morphed into a jailbreak late Thursday. Four detainees were unaccounted for at Delaney Hall detention center after about 50 captives pushed down a dormitory wall in protest of their living conditions, an immigration attorney representing one of the men told NJ Advance Media. Detainees were starving, reportedly having been made to wait hours for their next meal, when the literal pushback began. 'It's about the food, and some of the detainees were getting aggressive and it turned violent,' the lawyer, Mustafa Cetin, told NJ Advance Media. 'Based on what he told me it was an outer wall, not very strong, and they were able to push it down.' But the crowd was not alone in their protest—instead, a gathering of people outside of the facility mobilized to block ICE activity, barricading the gate to prevent more officers from entering the center. Amy Torres, executive director of New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice, told NPR affiliate WHYY that officers had used 'pepper spray and tackled and dragged protesters away from the facility.' 'She said some protesters had minor injuries, but no one was hit by the vehicles,' WHYY reported. Delaney Hall is run by a private prison company, GEO Group, that made $2.24 billion in revenue in 2024, according to its fourth-quarter earnings report. The company currently has a $60 million contract with the Trump administration to hold up to 1,000 people in the New Jersey detention center. Shortly after the ICE facility reopened in May, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and New Jersey Representative LaMonica McIver were arrested and charged while touring the facility. The lawmakers were reportedly visiting the facility to serve a summons for code violations to a Geo Group representative. The charges against Baraka were dropped weeks later. 'I have serious concerns about the reports of abusive circumstances at the facility,' McIver wrote in a statement late Thursday regarding the break out. 'Even now, as we are hearing reports from news organizations and advocates on the ground about a lack of food and basic rights for those inside, the administration appears to be stonewalling efforts to learn the truth.' Dozens of anti-ICE protests have spread from coast to coast, with gatherings in New York, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Atlanta, San Francisco, San Diego, Denver, Seattle, Las Vegas, Raleigh, Columbus, Oklahoma City, Washington, D.C., and others. But Donald Trump is still having a difficult time believing that his nativist agenda is facing such widespread opposition: On Wednesday, the president torched a Fox News reporter when she informed him that the protests had spread outside of Los Angeles, spouting from the Kennedy Center's red carpet that he simply didn't believe her while patting his administration on the back for its military intervention in the City of Angels.
Washington Post
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Four escape migrant detention center in Newark, N.J., authorities say
Four detainees have escaped from an immigration detention facility in Newark, according to the Department of Homeland Security. The detainees escaped from Delaney Hall, a privately run New Jersey detention facility that local elected officials have sought to close since before it began receiving detainees in May. 'Additional law enforcement partners have been brought in to find these escapees,' DHS said. Delaney Hall was the scene of a disturbance Thursday as demonstrators protesting conditions in the facility were facing off with law enforcement officers, according to an immigration advocate present who provided a video of the scene to The Washington Post. Amy Torres, executive director of advocacy group New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice, said she went to the facility after her group received reports on their hotline of a lunchtime fight breaking out and inmates not receiving adequate food. Torres she was aware of reports of escapees but did not see them while she was there Thursday. The department did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Delaney Hall has been a center of controversy in recent weeks. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka (D) was arrested and charged with trespassing in May after he tried to visit the facility, which he has tried to shut down. This month, Baraka sued President Donald Trump's interim U.S. attorney for New Jersey, claiming that the arrest was politically motivated.
Los Angeles Times
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
Disorder breaks out at New Jersey immigration detention center
NEWARK, N.J. — Protesters outside a New Jersey federal immigration detention center locked arms and pushed against barricades as vehicles passed through gates, inmates inside relayed word that meals had been delayed, and Newark's mayor cited reports of a possible uprising and escape as disorder broke out at the facility. Much is still unclear about what unfolded at the Delaney Hall facility in Newark, where Immigration and Customs Enforcement opened a 1,000-bed facility this year as part of President Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration. Photos and video from outside the facility Thursday show protesters pushing against the gates amid word that detainees inside were upset about delayed meals. Amy Torres, executive director of New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice, said some officers sprayed pepper spray and tackled and dragged protesters away from the facility. She said some protesters had minor injuries, but no one was hit by the vehicles. An attorney for someone detained at the facility told people inside became violent after meals were delayed. 'It's about the food, and some of the detainees were getting aggressive and it turned violent,' attorney Mustafa Cetin said. 'Based on what he told me it was an outer wall, not very strong, and they were able to push it down.' Attorneys with clients inside Delaney Hall have had calls canceled and have not been able to get inside the facility Friday, according to Araceti Argueta, a spokesperson for the American Friends Service Committee, a nonprofit that represents immigrants. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, a Democrat who's been critical of Trump's immigration crackdown, early Friday called for an end to this 'chaos and not allow this operation to continue unchecked.' 'We are concerned about reports of what has transpired at Delaney Hall this evening, ranging from withholding food and poor treatment, to uprising and escaped detainees,' he said. It's unclear whether there have been any escapes. In a statement issued Friday, American Friends Service Committee said people inside the facility reported getting small portions of food, with breakfast at 6 a.m., dinner at 10 p.m. and no lunch. Messages seeking comment were left with ICE, the Department of Homeland Security and local police. GEO Group, which owns the facility referred questions to ICE. ICE housed more than 53,000 people nationwide at the end of May, its latest public figures, which is well above its budgeted capacity of about 41,000 and approaching all-time highs. Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff and chief architect of Trump's immigration policies, said late last month that ICE should make at least 3,000 arrests a day. That would mark a dramatic increase from Jan. 20 to May 19, when the agency made an average of 656 arrests a day. Delaney Hall has been the cite of clashes this year between Democratic officials who say the facility needs more oversight and the administration and those who run the facility. Baraka was arrested May 9, handcuffed and charged with trespassing. The charge was later dropped and Democratic Rep. LaMonica McIver was later charged with assaulting federal officers stemming from a skirmish that happened outside the facility. She has denied the charges said she was doing her job as a lawmaker conducting oversight.
Korea Herald
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Disorder breaks out at New Jersey immigration detention center
NEWARK, New Jersey -- Protesters outside a New Jersey federal immigration detention center locked arms and pushed against barricades as vehicles passed through gates, inmates inside relayed word that meals had been delayed, and Newark's mayor cited reports of a possible uprising and escape as disorder broke out at the facility. Much is still unclear about what unfolded at the Delaney Hall facility in Newark, where Immigrations and Customs Enforcement opened a 1,000-bed facility this year as part of President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration. Photos and video from outside the facility Thursday show protesters pushing against the gates amid word that detainees inside were upset about delayed meals. Amy Torres, executive director of New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice, said some officers sprayed pepper spray and tackled and dragged protesters away from the facility. She said some protesters had minor injuries, but no one was hit by the vehicles. An attorney for someone detained at the facility told told that people inside became violent after meals were delayed. 'It's about the food, and some of the detainees were getting aggressive and it turned violent,' attorney Mustafa Cetin said. 'Based on what he told me it was an outer wall, not very strong, and they were able to push it down.' Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, a Democrat who's been critical of Trump's immigration crackdown, early Friday called for an end to this 'chaos and not allow this operation to continue unchecked.' 'We are concerned about reports of what has transpired at Delaney Hall this evening, ranging from withholding food and poor treatment, to uprising and escaped detainees,' he said. It's unclear whether there have been any escapes. Messages seeking comment were left with ICE, the Department of Homeland Security and local police. Delaney Hall has been the cite of clashes this year between Democratic officials who say the facility needs more oversight and the administration and those who run the facility. Baraka was arrested May 9 , handcuffed and charged with trespassing. The charge was later dropped and Democratic Rep. LaMonica McIver was later charged with assaulting federal officers stemming from a skirmish that happened outside the facility. She has denied the charges said she was doing her job as a lawmaker conducting oversight. (AP)
CTV News
13-06-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Disorder breaks out at New Jersey immigration detention centre
Protesters attempt to block a vehicle from leaving the Delaney Hall Detention Facility during protests over federal immigration enforcement raids in Newark, N.J., on June 12, 2025. (Olga Fedorova / AP Photo) NEWARK, N.J. — Protesters outside a New Jersey federal immigration detention centre locked arms and pushed against barricades as vehicles passed through gates, inmates inside relayed word that meals had been delayed, and Newark's mayor cited reports of a possible uprising and escape as disorder broke out at the facility. Much is still unclear about what unfolded at the Delaney Hall facility in Newark, where Immigrations and Customs Enforcement opened a 1,000-bed facility this year as part of U.S. President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration. Photos and video from outside the facility Thursday show protesters pushing against the gates amid word that detainees inside were upset about delayed meals. Amy Torres, executive director of New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice, said some officers sprayed pepper spray and tackled and dragged protesters away from the facility. She said some protesters had minor injuries, but no one was hit by the vehicles. An attorney for someone detained at the facility told told that people inside became violent after meals were delayed. 'It's about the food, and some of the detainees were getting aggressive and it turned violent,' attorney Mustafa Cetin said. 'Based on what he told me it was an outer wall, not very strong, and they were able to push it down.' Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, a Democrat who's been critical of Trump's immigration crackdown, early Friday called for an end to this 'chaos and not allow this operation to continue unchecked.' 'We are concerned about reports of what has transpired at Delaney Hall this evening, ranging from withholding food and poor treatment, to uprising and escaped detainees,' he said. It's unclear whether there have been any escapes. Messages seeking comment were left with ICE, the Department of Homeland Security and local police. Delaney Hall has been the cite of clashes this year between Democratic officials who say the facility needs more oversight and the administration and those who run the facility. Baraka was arrested May 9, handcuffed and charged with trespassing. The charge was later dropped and Democratic Rep. LaMonica McIver was later charged with assaulting federal officers stemming from a skirmish that happened outside the facility. She has denied the charges said she was doing her job as a lawmaker conducting oversight.
