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Resident urges Rockingham County to oppose reported plan for ICE detention beds
Summary
A Portsmouth resident urged the Rockingham County Board of Commissioners to oppose reports the county is considering opening 100–150 ICE detention beds, citing due‑process concerns and individual harms from detention and transfers.
During the public‑comment portion of the Sept. 18 meeting, Janai Lewis of Portsmouth addressed the Rockingham County Board of Commissioners and urged officials to oppose a reported plan to open 100–150 Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention beds in the county.
Lewis described cases she and others have observed in which people are detained while traveling for work or attending immigration court, including a friend who the speaker said remained in detention despite a judge dismissing a deportation case. She alleged that transfers and moves—citing incidents at regional sites including Pease—impede access to lawyers and delay hearings, and she said those practices cause harm to employment, housing and family stability. Lewis described the human cost as outweighing reported fiscal benefits (she referenced a $6 million figure she had heard) and urged the board to "shut this down." No board response to that public comment is recorded in the transcript segment.
The speaker identified herself as a resident of Portsmouth and asked the board why the county would seek increased detention capacity. The public‑comment segment concluded without an on‑the‑record response from the commissioners about the alleged proposal.
The board proceeded to nonpublic session following public comment.
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