From New Jersey Globe:
Gov. Mikie Sherrill and U.S. Senator Andy Kim join protestors outside Delaney Hall in Newark on March 25, 2026. (Photo: Office of the Governor).
Kim pepper sprayed, Sherrill denied access at Delaney Hall
Crowds gather to protest treatment of ICE detainees
By David Wildstein, May 25 2026 6:48 pm
Gov. Mikie Sherrill and U.S. Senator Andy Kim join protestors outside Delaney Hall in Newark on March 25, 2026. (Photo: Office of the Governor).
Kim pepper sprayed, Sherrill denied access at Delaney Hall
Crowds gather to protest treatment of ICE detainees
By David Wildstein, May 25 2026 6:48 pm
U.S. Senator Andy Kim was pepper sprayed by ICE agents outside Newark’s Delaney Hall detention center on Memorial Day during chaotic clashes between protesters and federal agents outside the complex, and Gov. Mikie Sherrill was denied access to the facility.
The confrontation erupted after demonstrators gathered in support of detainees engaged in a hunger strike over alleged medical neglect and living conditions inside Delaney Hall, a 1,000-bed immigration privately-run detention facility that currently houses about 300 people.
Kim said he had difficulty breathing after federal agents deployed pepper spray into the crowd, as protesters alleged officers also used batons to disperse demonstrators blocking entrances to the facility. His state director, Paul Stuart Aronsohn, was also pepper sprayed
By Monday afternoon, Sherrill arrived at the facility alongside members of New Jersey’s congressional delegation, including Reps. Rob Menendez (D-Jersey City), Nellie Pou (D-North Haledon), LaMonica McIver (D-Newark), and Analilia Mejia (D-Glen Ridge), as well as Newark officials and immigration advocates. Federal officials denied the governor entry.
“My request for access to Delaney Hall was formally denied this morning, raising serious questions about what they are trying to hide from public view,” Sherrill stated.
Sherrill renewed her longstanding opposition to private detention centers and linked the Newark controversy to a proposed immigration detention facility in Roxbury.
“I have long opposed private detention facilities and will continue to advocate for the closure of Delaney Hall and against any expansion of mass detention facilities in New Jersey,” she said.
The governor said families described “heartbreaking” conditions inside the facility and praised New Jersey’s congressional delegation for using federal oversight powers to pressure ICE officials.
“The people inside Delaney Hall are fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, and members of our community,” Sherrill said. “In New Jersey, we believe in the rule of law and that everyone deserves to be treated with basic dignity.”
Kim, who was granted entry after contacting federal officials on Saturday, escalated his criticism of the detention center and called for its closure.
“Delaney Hall must be shut down immediately,” Kim said. “ICE cannot be allowed to continue operating in this way.”
Detainees are permitted access to electronic tablets to communicate with attorneys and family members.
The Department of Homeland Security accused Democrats of politicizing the confrontation and defended conditions inside the facility.
“After Senator Kim personally called Secretary Mullin, DHS made sure he was allowed in the facility to conduct his congressional oversight responsibilities,” the agency said in a statement. “Governor Sherrill’s visit to Delaney Hall is nothing more than a political stunt on Memorial Day when visitation is currently suspended due to riots outside the facility.”
DHS said approximately 125 “agitators” surrounded the detention center Sunday night, carrying anti-ICE signs and Antifa flags, forming human chains and barricades that blocked entrances and exits to the facility.
Federal officials also rejected allegations of mistreatment inside Delaney Hall.
“All detainees are provided with 3 meals a day, clean water, clothing, bedding, showers, soap, and toiletries,” DHS said. “Illegal aliens also have access to phones to communicate with their family members and lawyers. Certified dieticians evaluate meals. In fact, ICE has higher detention standards than most U.S. prisons that hold actual U.S. citizens.”
The confrontation marks the latest political inferno over immigration enforcement in New Jersey, where Democratic officials have increasingly clashed with federal immigration authorities over detention operations and oversight access.
Hetty Rosenstein, the former New Jersey CWA state director and a longtime social justice advocate, called for more protestors to head to Delaney Hall.
“On the way to Delaney Hall this AM. Get in the car. It’s a concentration camp, and they are disappearing people,” she said. “If not now, when?”
Republican Assemblyman Gerald Scharfenberger criticized Democratic officeholders for joining a protest on Memorial Day.
“While the rest of us were paying tribute to our fallen military heroes, Governor Sherrill and Senator Kim chose to create a cheap photo-op at an ICE detention center. Our military who made the ultimate sacrifice deserve our utmost respect and thanks,” said Scharfenberger. “Lawbreakers deserve the full effect of our laws. This is absolutely shameful.”
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