Socorro council hears hours of opposition to proposed DHS detention facility, directs city attorney to investigate ways to block it

Socorro city leaders heard more than an hour of public testimony Tuesday night as residents, faith leaders, attorneys and county officials urged the council to oppose a proposed Department of Homeland Security (DHS) detention facility at city-owned-adjacent warehouses.

El Paso County Commissioner Eliana Olegin, who said she first learned of the proposed facility on Jan. 20, told the council the county had already received more than 200 public comments opposing the project and is forming a task force to coordinate a regional response. "We will also be forming a task force to bring together all of our community partners as only by standing together can we hope to stop this facility from coming to our—" Olegin said, urging the city to consider ordinances that would forbid detention facilities within city limits.

The sentiment at the meeting was consistent: speakers raised concerns about human-rights abuses at other regional facilities, the strain a large detention operation would place on local water and sewer systems, and reduced access to legal counsel for detained…