New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill has deployed state police to enforce designated protest zones and vehicle checkpoints outside Delaney Hall, a Newark immigration detention center, following violent clashes between demonstrators and federal immigration officers.

The governor described the situation as having become “unsafe” and “completely unacceptable,” emphasizing the need to lower tensions at the site. This intervention followed days of escalating protests where demonstrators blocked roads, formed human barriers with trash cans and umbrellas, and engaged in confrontations with federal agents who used pepper spray and batons.

On May 29, 2026, a Justice Department official charged Brendan John Geier with allegedly kicking and biting ICE officers at Delaney Hall. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche stated the department would not tolerate attacks on immigration enforcement personnel.

Secretary of Homeland Security Mullin announced the arrest of nine individuals outside Delaney Hall after reports of anti-ICE demonstrators surrounding federal agents and assaulting them. Mullin reiterated that law and order would prevail in the matter.

Delaney Hall, a 1,000-bed detention facility reopened under the second Trump administration, has become central to national immigration policy debates. Detainee advocates reported a hunger strike involving 300 individuals seeking release. Sherrill clarified that the state police intervention was aimed at public safety without altering who controls the facility itself.