DHS opening new ICE facility at former Appleton, Minn. prison
ICE detention facility to open in Appleton, Minnesota
The Department of Homeland Security will be opening a new detention center in a an old prison in western Minnesota. FOX 9's Mike Manzoni has more.
APPLETON, Minn. (FOX 9) - The Department of Homeland Security will convert a former prison in Appleton, Minnesota into a new ICE detention facility, the facility's owners announced on Tuesday.
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What we know:
CoreCivic Inc. announced on Tuesday it had been awarded a new contract by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to open a 1,600-bed facility at the former Prairie Correctional Facility in Appleton.
The new contract will take effect starting August 11. CoreCivic says it will earn fixed monthly payments plus per diem allotments based on detainees being held.
The backstory:
DHS has been considering a new facility in Minnesota for months. The Washington Post first reported last August that ICE was looking at the facility in Minnesota as a potential new detention center as it looked to expand its detention capacity.
In June, DHS published a document outlining the requirements for the Prairie Detention Facility.
Local perspective:
Appleton is located in far western Minnesota, just about 20 miles east of the South Dakota border. The prison is located on the southside of the city off of Highway 119.
What they're saying:
In a statement, CoreCivic CEO Patrick Swindle said: "We are pleased to announce the new contract at our Prairie Correctional Facility. While this facility has been idle since 2010, we have made investments to help ensure an efficient reactivation in the event of a new contract. The geographic location of this facility, similar to our other recent contract awards, improves our ability to support our government partner throughout the United States."
The other side:
A spokesperson with DHS provided FOX 9 with the following statement: "ICE purchased Appleton Detention Facility for detention space. Every day, DHS is conducting law enforcement activities across the country to keep Americans safe. It should not come as news that ICE will be making arrests in states across the U.S. and ensuring we have resources to carry out President Trump’s mission.
"ICE is targeting criminal illegal aliens including murderers, rapists, criminals, gang members and more. Thanks to the One Big Beautiful Bill, ICE has new funding to expand detention space to keep these criminals off American streets before they are removed for good from our communities."