Five Democratic U.S. Reps. send letter to DHS secretary opposing ICE detention center in Romulus

Five Democratic U.S. Representatives from Michigan sent a letter on Thursday to Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin to oppose the development of a planned ICE detention facility in Romulus.

Rep. Haley Stevens of Birmingham led the letter and was joined by Reps. Debbie Dingell of Ann Arbor, Hillary Scholten of Grand Rapids, Kristen McDonald Rivet of Bay City, and Shri Thanedar of Detroit — almost the entire Democratic delegation to the U.S. House from Michigan.

The letter lays out a number of arguments that have been well-worn against the detention center — including local opposition and zoning concerns and environmental regulations for the area’s floodplain and wetlands.

“Given these dynamics, it is clear DHS must not move forward with the planned Romulus detention facility,” the letter continues, noting that Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and the City of Romulus have already sued in federal court to stop or slow the detention center’s development.

Stevens and Scholten have also been vocally opposed to the major ICE detention facility in Michigan that is currently operating, the North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin, a facility privately owned by GEO Group and contracted as an ICE detention center, especially in the wake of the December 2025 death of Nenko Gantchev at the Baldwin facility.