Statement from Congresswoman April McClain Delaney on Reports of a Proposed ICE Detention Facility in Hagerstown

WASHINGTON, DC-Today, Congresswoman April McClain Delaney released a statement on reports of a proposed ICE detention facility in Hagerstown, Maryland:

"I am outraged by reports that the Trump Administration may be considering the construction of an ICE detention facility in or near Hagerstown. If true, this proposal is unacceptable-and I will fight it with every tool available to me.

"The mass detention of human beings without due process is a profound moral and constitutional failure. Detaining people-like asylum seekers and families-far from legal counsel, their support systems, and meaningful oversight creates a grave risk of unlawful detention and irreversible harm.

"Hagerstown is not a dumping ground for a broken federal system-it is a proud community built on fairness, decency, and the rule of law. I will not quietly accept a facility that threatens civil liberties, undermines due process, and contradicts our values.

"Let me be clear about what I am doing, and what I will continue to do, to stop this:

• I am demanding full and immediate transparency from DHS and ICE, including all planning documents, contracts, internal analyses, and communications related to any proposed detention facility in Washington County. There will be no secrecy and no backroom decisions.
• I am scheduled to meet with ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations field office in Baltimore in January, where I will conduct my constitutionally required oversight of this facility which has my constituents locked inside.
• I will work with colleagues to use aggressive congressional oversight-including formal investigations-to expose any effort to rush this project forward while cutting corners on legality, due process, or human rights.
• I will oppose any attempt to detain people without full constitutional protections, and I will challenge policies that normalize prolonged or unlawful detention under the guise of efficiency.
• I will stand with community members, faith leaders, advocates, and local governments who are speaking out against this proposal, and I will elevate their voices at every level of the federal government.

"This is about values and who we are, and that begins with protecting our neighbors. A government that detains people in bulk, behind walls and razor wire, without transparency or accountability, is a government that has lost its moral compass.

"I will not allow Hagerstown to become a symbol of that failure. I will fight this proposal publicly, relentlessly, and unapologetically-and I will keep the people of this community informed every step of the way."