U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is not pursuing a detention facility in Newport, according to a joint stipulation filed Friday, Oct. 23, in U.S. District Court in Oregon. 

Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield’s office sent a news release Friday headlined, “ICE abandons detention center, no plans anywhere in Oregon.”

“Oregon stood up, we made the federal government answer for its plans in court, and now they have to follow the law,” Rayfield said in the statement.

The legal agreement ends nearly a year of uncertainty for the community and a consolidated lawsuit brought by the state and joined by the city of Newport and two environmental groups, Oregon Shores Conservation Coalition and Eugene-based Cascadia Wildlands. 

In November of last year, Newport city leaders received limited information about plans for a detention center at their municipal airport. The Coast Guard helicopter stationed there, which supports the crabbing and fishing industry that the community relies on, was moved to North Bend. A federal judge ordered it returned in a separate case filed by Rayfield’s office.

Rayfield also filed the case that resulted in the Friday stipulation. It challenged construction and operation of the detention center on civil rights, economic and environmental grounds, including the Endangered Species Act and potential harm to the threatened western snowy plover and marbled murrelet.

“This is a huge victory for the people of Oregon and our shared environment, and is a testament to the power of our coastal communities who joined loudly in opposition to this reckless and inhumane plan,” said Josh Laughlin, executive director of Cascadia Wildlands, in a statement. “Hopefully this case will provide a template for other states to thwart further attempts to build these ruthless facilities that also despoil the environment.”

Under the stipulated order, the Department of Homeland Security must notify the plaintiffs before moving forward with facility plans through Aug. 1, 2027.

Ashli Blow brings 12 years of experience in journalism and science writing, focusing on the intersection of issues that impact everyone connected to the land — whether private or public, developed or forested.