ICE Conducts 150 Traffic Stops in Nashville, Detains 40 in Louisiana; Newark's Delaney Hall Detention Sparks Protests Over Safety

In Nashville, Tennessee, the Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) conducted over 150 traffic stops over the weekend, leading to the detention of dozens of individuals. The operation, overseen by ICE New Orleans Director Mellissa Harper, targeted areas with high crash rates and suspected gang activity, resulting in the discovery of drivers without valid licenses, illegal drugs, firearms, and suspected gang affiliations. Dozens of those detained were subsequently transported by ICE to detention facilities, including some to Louisiana detention centers, where 40 individuals were reported to have been arrested or transferred. In Newark, New Jersey, controversy has arisen over the operation of a detention facility at Delaney Hall, which began housing migrants. Mayor Ras Baraka and immigration rights leaders have criticized the facility's operation as dangerous and illegal, asserting that it lacks the necessary permits to operate as a detention center. The facility, a 1,000-bed site managed by the private prison company Geo Group under a 15-year, $1 billion contract with ICE, has been accused of blocking Newark fire inspectors from evaluating its safety systems, including fire alarms, electrical systems, and plumbing. The contention centers around the facility's use of an old certificate of occupancy from 2007, which city officials claim is invalid. Protests have erupted in response to these actions. In Nashville, pro-immigration activists confronted a bus transporting detainees, leading to verbal altercations with ICE agents. In Newark, Mayor Baraka and supporters demonstrated outside Delaney Hall, demanding access for safety inspections and the release of detainees. Additionally, a protest was held outside the Bluebonnet Detention Facility in Anson, Texas, against the Trump administration's immigration policies, particularly the efforts to deport a group of Venezuelans, which were temporarily halted by the U.S. Supreme Court.