A Michigan lawmaker is pushing to block state-owned property from being sold or repurposed for federal detention facilities after 32 people, including children, died nationwide in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in 2025.
On Thursday, state Rep. Dylan Wegela, D-Garden City, introduced the measure, which is aimed at preventing ICE from expanding detention operations in the state. His legislation, House Bill 5494, would prohibit the state from conveying property to ICE and would require deed restrictions barring any state-sold property from being used as a detention center.
“2025 tied for the deadliest year on record when it comes to deaths in ICE detention centers,” Wegela said in a statement. “32 people died in ICE custody. 32 lives taken without dignity or due process. Some might say there’s not much we can do here in Michigan, or at the state level, to fight against this administration. That’s wrong. We can fight against ICE right here at home.”
The bill would also require private contractors operating detention facilities on formerly state-owned land to forfeit the property back to the state if it is used for immigration detention, according to Wegela’s office.
The proposal follows scrutiny of ICE detention in Michigan, including the reopening of the North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin, a privately owned facility that can hold up to 1,800 detainees. The center reopened in June after years of operating as a private prison.
In December, a 56-year-old man died at the facility, prompting questions from lawmakers and advocates about transparency and medical care. ICE confirmed the death only after pressure from U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, who has become one of the strongest critics of ICE’s ramped-up enforcement.
Wegela said the deaths and violent encounters involving federal immigration agents were the impetus for the bill.
“We’re seeing targeted killings against those peacefully resisting ICE in their assault on Minneapolis, like the shootings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti,” he said. “We continue to get horrific news of how those same agents treat people out of the public eye. One of the first deaths in custody this year was Geraldo Lunas Campos. ICE deemed it a suicide. The El Paso County Medical Examiner’s Office revealed the truth: it was a homicide. Lunas Campos died due to compression on his neck and torso.”
Immigration attorneys and advocates in Michigan say enforcement tactics have grown increasingly aggressive and covert, with arrests occurring during routine traffic stops and marriage-based green card interviews. ICE arrests in Michigan have nearly tripled compared to the previous year, with most people detained having no criminal convictions.
“These detention centers should not exist,” Wegela said. “What we can do in Michigan is make it clear that ICE is not welcome here.”
He acknowledged the bill faces an uphill battle because Republicans control the state House.
“The unfortunate reality is that unless House Republicans wake up to the reality of the threat that ICE poses to law and order, this will not move in the legislature,” Wegela said. “I’m introducing this today as a rallying point for the folks actually fighting to keep us safe: the activists and organizers. I hope the House heeds their call to fight against the rising tide of fascism.”