Trump Administration Plans 528-Bed Louisiana Migrant Facility as 4,400 Deportation Flights Used Nearby Hub
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jul 7
Trump Administration Plans 528-Bed Louisiana Migrant Facility as 4,400 Deportation Flights Used Nearby Hub
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jul 7
Summary
A 528-bed migrant holding facility could open as soon as next month in Alexandria, Louisiana, beside Alexandria International Airport, to stage families and unaccompanied children for deportation flights.
ICE says the site is a 72-hour "staging area," not a detention center, designed to speed final flight preparations at the nation's largest deportation hub.
More than 4,400 immigration enforcement flights used the airport last year, and ICE records say migrants there remain in ICE legal custody even as contractors are told to avoid terms like prisoners or detainees.
LaSalle's nonprofit arm will hold the contract and LaSalle Corrections will help operate the site, drawing scrutiny after two detainee deaths since April at another LaSalle-run ICE facility in Louisiana.
The plan also raises legal and humanitarian questions because unaccompanied children are typically placed in HHS-supervised shelters, while airpark officials call the site a voluntary family return effort.