Minnesota Governor Tim Walz is expressing concern as the federal government prepares to turn a prison in Appleton, Minnesota into a holding center for Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees as soon as this fall.
The Department of Homeland Security has finalized a contract with company CoreCivic to open the 1,600-bed facility, effective August 11. The prison has been closed since 2010. Appleton is in far western Minnesota.
"My hope is that this facility is going to be used for that, that the federal government follows all laws, they follow the constitutional rights, they make sure that this facility is safe and modern," said Walz.
Still, he is not keen on the idea of private prisons.
"You know, philosophically I've been very clear on this, I think it's the state's job to do these things," Walz explained. "It's the government's job to do these things. I think it's always a very dangerous situation where you're outsourcing corrections."
CoreCivic is reportedly preparing for intakes, and plan to be fully up and running by the middle of next year, and Walz said it is completely independent from the state.
"The state has nothing to do with it," he says. "Our opinion, and Commissioner (Paul) Schnell, had put out that it is not the proper way to do this. It should not be used for that, and the federal government is going to do what the federal government does."
CoreCivic will get per diem pay for the number of detainees held on top of fixed monthly payments from the federal government.
"It should not be used for that, and the federal government is going to do what the federal government does"
"It should not be used for that, and the federal government is going to do what the federal government does"
