Overview
- Red Willow County District Judge Patrick Heng denied a temporary injunction, clearing the way for the facility to begin housing ICE detainees while the lawsuit proceeds.
- The judge also rejected the state's motion to dismiss, ruling that the 13 McCook residents and former state senator have standing to challenge the conversion.
- Heng found that Nebraska statutes delegate sufficient authority to the executive branch to contract with the federal government and repurpose the facility.
- ICE certified the site last week, and officials have said detainees could arrive within days under a deal providing roughly 300 beds.
- All 180 state inmates were moved out ahead of the change, and the ICE contract is expected to bring the state about $14 million annually through 2027.