Inside Delaney Hall: A Look at an ICE Facility
During a recent segment of “Fox & Friends Weekend,” co-host Rachel Campos-Duffy offered viewers an inside glimpse of Delaney Hall, an ICE facility. She stated, “There’s nothing embarrassing about it. The place is quite clean and has various recreational amenities — everything from outdoor soccer fields to weight equipment and even domino tables. Plus, there’s a phone for contacting consulates.”
Campos-Duffy continued, explaining that the facility is equipped with legal resources, computers, and webcams. “It’s not like they’re trapped; it resembles a high school, and truthfully, it might look better than several high schools around,” she noted, mentioning that U.S. prisons could take some pointers from this facility.
Meanwhile, a significant incident occurred as Newark’s mayor was arrested amid a visit by Democratic Council members aiming to perform a “surveillance visit” at the facility. Todd Lyon, the U.S. immigration and customs executive director, guided a Fox News host through the premises, revealing that over 75% of the individuals held have prior criminal convictions or pending charges.
Campos-Duffy elaborated on the nature of these crimes, which can include serious offenses like rape, murder, and robbery. She also highlighted that immigrants at the facility are empowered to take oaths if they wish. “You will see sign-ups in both Spanish and English stating, ‘Want to go home?’ They provide a phone number for taking your own oath, or you can simply ask someone there, ‘Hey, I just want to return to my country.’ If they respond, the U.S. government can arrange a free flight and provide $1,000 within 48 hours,” she explained.
She asserted that the notion of detainees being without options isn’t true; they are given pathways to self-report if they choose to do so.
In a related development, the mayor of a nearby city faced backlash for attempting to impede the reopening of ICE facilities. This was shortly followed by an incident where New Jersey legislators confronted ICE agents, claiming that tensions escalated during their visit.
There is footage depicting a conflict where state representative Lamonica McIver was said to have pushed past an agent, though she resisted pressing charges. “There’s no video of me body slamming anyone. We were just there for our routine surveillance,” she stated.
Following this confrontation, lawmakers did eventually gain access to the ICE facilities for their tour.
On another note, Massachusetts Democrat Jake Autincross recently urged the Department of Homeland Security to make all footage available for public review, allowing individuals to draw their own conclusions.
A Pew Research Center poll this year revealed mixed perspectives among Americans regarding deportation, with about 32% of adults advocating for the deportation of all illegal immigrants and 16% opposing it. However, many agree that a significant number of immigrants currently residing in the U.S. should face deportation, though there’s no clear consensus on the criteria for such actions.
