IN THE COUNTY LEGISLATURE OF JACKSON COUNTY, MISSOURI
Title
A RESOLUTION expressing the opposition of the Jackson County Legislature to the reopening of the CoreCivic-owned facility in Leavenworth, Kansas as an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center.
Intro
RESOLUTION NO. 22115, November 20, 2025
INTRODUCED BY Manuel Abarca IV, County Legislator
Body
WHEREAS, CoreCivic, a private prison corporation, is seeking to reopen its previously closed detention facility in Leavenworth, Kansas as a 1,000-bed ICE jail, despite significant public concern regarding the impact on immigrant families and communities; and,
WHEREAS, the facility has remained closed since 2021, and its reopening is currently the subject of litigation between CoreCivic and the City of Leavenworth regarding whether a special-use permit is required before operations may resume; and,
WHEREAS, the Kansas state court has issued an injunction preventing CoreCivic from reopening the facility without first obtaining said permit, and CoreCivic is scheduled to seek reversal of that injunction in federal court on November 25, 2025 at 3:00 P.M. in Topeka; and,
WHEREAS, reopening this facility as an ICE detention center would enable ICE to detain and remove hundreds or thousands of immigrants from Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska, and the broader region; and,
WHEREAS, numerous regional civil rights, faith-based, and community advocacy organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas, Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, Kansas Interfaith Action, the Cross-Border Network for Justice & Solidarity, New American Community, and others have spoken out against the reopening and are mobilizing residents to oppose the detention of immigrants in private, for-profit facilities; and,
WHEREAS, reopening the Leavenworth detention facility means the activation of ICE
operations in the region, which would be at odds with Missouri-based non-profit
organizations like the KC Chapter...
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