OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Gov. Inslee has signed a bill aimed at shutting down one of the country’s largest for-profit, privately run immigration jails.
The nearly 1,600-bed Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma is operated by the GEO Group under a contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and it’s the only for-profit detention facility in the state.
The bill would allow GEO to continue operating the jail until 2025, but it’s likely to face a legal challenge.
The Detention Center currently houses fewer than 200 detainees because of pandemic-related precautions.