There are no detention centers currently operated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Prince George鈥檚 County, Maryland, and a pair of bills drawn up by county lawmakers aim to make sure it stays that way.
One bill would define exactly what a detention facility is in order to close any potential loopholes that can be exploited. The other requires that the county deny any permits, including certificates of occupancy, to any facility used for detentions.
Right now, there鈥檚 no indication that ICE is planning to detain any immigrants in Prince George鈥檚 County. But county leaders said recent efforts to build and house detainees in Howard and Washington counties are leading them to be proactive on the matter.
The legislation from at-large council member Jolene Ivey goes through the county鈥檚 zoning code to define a detention center as any space used to 鈥渋nvoluntarily confine鈥� someone ahead of a legal proceeding, even if that facility isn鈥檛 necessarily called a detention center, and then prohibits it unless it鈥檚 a county-owned facility. She said the legislation was drafted in part because of concerns over how ICE might use increased office space it鈥檚 looking to acquire in Hyattsville.
鈥淲hen they expand into bigger space, they say it鈥檚 for office space, but we’ve seen it happen just in Baltimore, where they’ll have office space and suddenly that’s packed with people being detained,鈥� Ivey said. 鈥淲e want to make sure that doesn’t happen in Prince George’s County.鈥�
Ivey said the bill was drafted weeks ago and she鈥檚 waiting for Council Chair Krystal Oriadha to put it on the agenda. She doesn鈥檛 know why Oriadha, who has said she would back any anti-ICE legislation, has been holding this bill from going forward.
Oriadha said she鈥檚 not aware of Ivey鈥檚 bill. If she puts it forward, Ivey said she believes her bill would easily pass the county council and become law. Oriadha said she hasn鈥檛 seen the bill yet, though the two also don鈥檛 have a great working relationship with each other.
A bill that was introduced this week came from the council鈥檚 other at-large member, Wala Blegay. Her bill would prohibit the issuance of a building permit or certificate of occupancy for any privately owned building used for detention purposes. Blegay said she鈥檚 not aware of any efforts by the federal government to procure space for more detention facilities in the county, but she doesn鈥檛 want to take that chance.
鈥淲e have a lot of space in industrial areas 鈥� more than any other area 鈥� and so those are usually the places they use for those type of detention centers,鈥� Blegay said. 鈥淪o one of the things we’re concerned of is that with a private detention center, they could do an NDA with 鈥� somebody that owns industrial area, and that could be something that they do that might slip past us.”
She added she wants “to make sure we close every door possible.”
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