CoreCivic reverses course, asks Leavenworth for permission to operate ICE prison
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- CoreCivic reapplies for Leavenworth special use permit to operate ICE jail
- City schedules public hearings and planning vote before final March decision
- CoreCivic cites $60M ICE contract, promises jobs and safety improvements
CoreCivic, America’s largest private prison chain, is doing something its executives and lawyers have repeatedly argued it shouldn’t have to do — ask permission.
The city of Leavenworth announced on Monday that the company has re-applied for a special use permit to operate its shuttered facility on the outskirts of town as an immigrant detention center under contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.
“City Staff and the City’s legal team are currently reviewing the application and anticipate working with CoreCivic’s representatives on the public process,” Leavenworth said on its website.
Tentative dates have been set for three rounds of public meetings where local officials will hear from community members, including staunch CoreCivic critics from across the Kansas City metro whose objections to the proposed ICE prison have intensified over the course of an eight-month legal battle.
The Planning Commission is set to review the zoning application on Feb. 2. The City Commission will then entertain the proposal on Feb. 24 before rendering a final decision on March 10.
“We really don’t have much comment beyond what we posted, other than we’re looking forward to working with them and seeing how the process plays out,” Leavenworth City Manager Scott Peterson said in a phone interview Tuesday.
Kansas ICE prison
CoreCivic’s reversal of course comes two weeks after U.S. District Court Judge Toby Crouse threw out the company’s counter lawsuit against Leavenworth, which argued that the city’s zoning laws illegally obstructed the federal government’s ability to enforce immigration laws.
CoreCivic announced in September that it had entered into a new contract with ICE valued at $60 million a year. But the company will only begin receiving monthly payments once a state court injunction blocking detainees at the Leavenworth facility is lifted.
“In an effort to meet the urgent needs of the federal government with respect to its immigration enforcement efforts and continue full operations at (Midwest Regional Reception Center), CoreCivic is assessing all available avenues, including by filing the existing application for a special use permit,” spokesperson Brian Todd said in an email statement.
“(W)e’re hopeful in following the SUP process as the City has instructed, that they will, in turn, process our application in a fair and timely manner and work collaboratively to reach a positive and mutually beneficial resolution,” Todd added.
CoreCivic abandoned its previous special use permit application in March, claiming it should be able to operate its detention center “by right.”
A hearing before the Kansas Court of Appeals is scheduled for Feb. 10 — eight days after the Planning Commission is expected to review CoreCivic’s application. The company is asking the appeals court to lift the injunction blocking it from accepting detainees.
CoreCivic previously operated its Leavenworth facility under a contract with the U.S. Marshals Service, but that contract ended after then-President Joe Biden issued an executive order barring the Department of Justice from partnering with private prisons.
Months before the private prison was closed at the end of 2021, dangerous understaffing and the stockpiling of weapons and drugs within the facility prompted U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson to call CoreCivic’s prison “an absolute hell hole” during a sentencing hearing.
Attorneys representing inmates there said the facility’s culture of violence and inattentiveness led to two suicides and at least 10 severe beatings and stabbings in its final year of operation.
CoreCivic has argued in court filings that if the detention center is allowed to reopen, safety will be a top priority.
The company says its facility could support up to 1,033 incarcerated people arrested by ICE, creating 300 jobs and generating upwards of $2 million a year for Leavenworth.
Ashley Hernandez, a Leavenworth resident who leads a grassroots group opposed to CoreCivic’s plans, welcomed the coming public debate over the zoning application. She said there are numerous reasons why Leavenworth residents of diverse political persuasions have found common cause speaking out against the proposed detention center.
“We are thankful that CoreCivic is finally following city law and applying for a special use permit,” Hernandez said in a text message.
“Due to the previous civil and human rights offenses that occurred at this facility, and that are still occurring at CoreCivic-operated facilities across the nation — and CoreCivic’s previous lack of willingness to work with the City of Leavenworth — the Carceral Accountability Council believes it would be in the best interest of the city in terms of tax dollars, public services, and human safety that the city deny the permit,” Hernandez said.
