Overview
- Judge Eumi K. Lee extended a temporary stay for one week on construction at the 25-acre Gilroy site after a Sept. 8 hearing and signaled in a tentative ruling that she is likely to grant a preliminary injunction.
- California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Santa Clara County sued in June under the National Environmental Policy Act and the Administrative Procedure Act, arguing the government failed to conduct required environmental review and local consultations before advancing the project.
- Plaintiffs pointed to blueprints and county assessments showing detention space for more than 100 people and raised site hazards from past agricultural research and an undersized septic system, which they say require formal study.
- Federal lawyers say the site is largely office space with brief processing capacity for about 10 people, argued the project is exempt from NEPA, said interior demolition began in spring 2026, and noted the Morgan Hill lease has expired.
- Community groups and local leaders have held repeated rallies outside the federal courthouse, and the judge’s final decision by Sept. 15 could pause the project for months or years and shape how local governments can challenge federal detention or processing sites.