New Jersey ICE Detention Center Restores Family Visits After Week of Clashes and Hunger Strike

Family visits resumed Sunday at Delaney Hall, a privately operated ICE detention center in Newark, after days of protests, clashes with federal officers and a hunger strike by detainees alleging unsafe and unsanitary conditions inside the facility.

New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill said limited visitation resumed at noon Sunday and regular visiting hours would return the following day. "It is critical that outside actors allow this to happen safely," Sherrill wrote on X, while continuing to call on the Department of Homeland Security to improve detainee medical care, stop pressuring migrants to sign deportation documents and ultimately close the facility.

The decision followed a week of escalating demonstrations outside Delaney Hall, where protesters accused Immigration and Customs Enforcement of mistreating detainees. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka imposed a nightly curfew around the site after confrontations between demonstrators and federal officers led to multiple arrests.

Sherrill said state police intervention became "absolutely necessary" after masked protesters allegedly attacked barriers, lit fires and threw projectiles.

DHS denied allegations of abuse and defended conditions at the facility. Responding to criticism from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries after a congressional visit Sunday, the department said: "This is a detention center — we do not provide luxury accommodations. What we do provide are basic necessities like beds, clean water, comprehensive healthcare, and 3 meals a day until they go HOME."

Lawmakers who toured the facility described conditions differently. Jeffries said detainees reported "unsanitary living conditions, lack of adequate medical care and unhealthy food."

The unrest intensified after roughly 300 detainees launched a hunger and labor strike on May 22. Several detainees, speaking through advocates and relatives, alleged that meals contained worms or mold and said overcrowded rooms lacked air conditioning. Others accused immigration judges of delaying hearings and denying bond requests to pressure migrants into self-deportation.

Delaney Hall, a 1,000-bed detention center operated by GEO Group under a federal contract, has faced criticism since reopening in 2025 as part of the Trump administration's expanded immigration detention strategy.