Maryland Congressional Delegation Presses Administration on ICE Actions in Maryland, Proposed Detention Facility in Hagerstown

Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Angela Alsobrooks and Congresswoman April McClain Delaney were joined by U.S. Representatives Johnny Olszewski, Sarah Elfreth, Glenn Ivey, Steny Hoyer, Kweisi Mfume, and Jamie Raskin (all D-Md.) in sending aletterto the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) leadership condemning enforcement actions across the state that have stoked fear, caused injury, damaged property, and denied individuals their due process rights and dignity.
The lawmakers’ letter cites constituent concerns about ongoing impacts of ICE operations on Marylanders. This includes the conditions of holding rooms at ICE’s Baltimore Field office, which are designed for short-term detentions not to exceed 12 hours. However, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations has utilized these facilities to confine individuals for days while denying them basic human needs and legal counsel. The letter also comes on the heels of news reports revealing ICE’s plans to hold as many as 80,000 detained immigrants in new warehouse-style detention centers around the country, including a processing facility in Hagerstown, Maryland.
“As members of Maryland’s Congressional Delegation, we write to express our serious concerns regarding Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) operations in our state over the past year, and to state our staunch opposition to reported plans to expand ICE detention. DHS and ICE have stoked fear throughout our communities by conducting reckless enforcement actions that have resulted in injuries, property damage, and unlawful or prolonged detentions without regard for our constituents’ safety and fundamental rights,”the lawmakers begin.
“These practices have no place in Maryland, are incompatible with our values, and underscore our opposition to any expansion of ICE’s presence in our communities,”they continued. “Any efforts to subject Hagerstown and Washington County to such a facility without the consent of state and local officials or our constituents is a serious violation of the principles of federalism and self-governance.”
The lawmakers go on to address the reported potential new ICE facility in Hagerstown, writing, “Our state has spoken. We believe no person in the United States, regardless of immigration status, should be subjected to inhumane conditions or detained without dignity or due process.”
The lawmakers concluded the letter with a demand for DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons to submit all documentation, including “planning materials, solicitations, proposals, site assessments, and communications” concerning Hagerstown and other locations in Maryland since last year.
Text of the letter is availablehereand below:
Dear Secretary Noem and Acting Director Lyons,
As members of Maryland’s Congressional Delegation, we write to express our serious concerns regarding Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) operations in our state over the past year, and to state our staunch opposition to reported plans to expand ICE detention. DHS and ICE have stoked fear throughout our communities by conducting reckless enforcement actions that have resulted in injuries, property damage, and unlawful or prolonged detentions without regard for our constituents’ safety and fundamental rights.
These concerns stem from the ongoing impacts that ICE operations have already inflicted upon Maryland residents and communities resulting in chaos, confusion, and violence. The holding rooms at ICE’s Baltimore Field Office are designed for short-term detentions not to exceed 12 hours. However, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations has utilized these facilities to confine individuals for days. Our constituents have reported that detainees have routinely been denied access to medical care and medications, basic hygiene products, and timely communication with their families and legal counsel. These conditions persist despite assurances from DHS that “ICE is committed to safe, secure, and humane environments for all of those in ICE custody.” These practices have no place in Maryland, are incompatible with our values, and underscore our opposition to any expansion of ICE’s presence in our communities.
Last month, reporting revealed that ICE plans to hold as many as 80,000 detained immigrants in new warehouse-style detention centers around the country, including a processing facility in Hagerstown, Maryland. It is our understanding that such a facility would be used to house noncitizens for as long as “a few weeks” prior to their transfer to large-scale warehouses to facilitate deportations. Recently, we learned that last week a DHS official visited a potential processing facility site which is not designed or outfitted to house, feed, or provide adequate care for detainees. It is deeply concerning that the proposed location is situated in an area of Washington County that is not zoned for overnight habitation, creating a direct conflict between DHS and local laws. Our congressional delegation demands more details on these proposed plans and the impact they would have on the local community.
As DHS is aware, the Maryland Dignity Not Detention Act prohibits state and local law enforcement from entering into agreements to detain individuals for civil immigration matters. In enacting this law, the state of Maryland definitively rejected any involvement in civil immigration detention.
Our state has spoken. We believe no person in the United States, regardless of immigration status, should be subjected to inhumane conditions or detained without dignity or due process. Any efforts to subject Hagerstown and Washington County to such a facility without the consent of state and local officials or our constituents is a serious violation of the principles of federalism and self-governance.
To better understand DHS and ICE plans in our state, we request that you provide all documentation, including but not limited to planning materials, solicitations, proposals, site assessments, and communications concerning the establishment of a processing facility in Hagerstown, Maryland and any other locations where ICE operations are planned or have been established in our state since January 20, 2025. Maryland’s communities should not be compelled to host federal detention or processing operations that conflict with local law or the will of the people we represent.
Sincerely,