New Jersey sued the Trump administration on Friday (March 20, 2026) over a proposed federal immigration detention center in its state.
The move follows Maryland, which sued the U.S. Department of Homeland Security last month to stop construction of a similar facility in the State.
New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill and Attorney General Jennifer Davenport’s lawsuit against DHS and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement seeks to halt a plan to convert a vacant warehouse into a large-scale detention facility, which would have the capacity to hold 1,500 detainees.
The Trump administration plans to convert the warehouse and operate the immigration detention center without addressing the state’s concerns about water, sewage and public safety, New Jersey said.
It also does not account for the site’s sensitive environment or whether the warehouse is “an appropriate place” for detention, according to the state’s leaders.
