Burleigh Morton Detention Center housing more ICE detainees as the demand for temporary holds increases

BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) - President Trump’s deportation plans are impacting the U.S. jail system, and we’re seeing those effects here in North Dakota. After an ICE agent arrests someone, the detainee needs to wait somewhere while the agency plans their next destination.

Major Trent Wangen said before the new detention center was built, they’d only house a couple of ICE detainees at a time, and usually for no more than a day since there simply wasn’t enough room to house more people.

However, since the Burleigh Morton Detention Center has more beds than the old building, ICE has asked the jail to provide temporary holds for more people who enter the U.S. illegally, and in some cases, they’re housing them for weeks.

“Until the last few weeks, the ICE usage had been very low, but that has increased,” Major Wangen said.

It’s become increasingly common for the detention center to have 15 to 20 ICE detainees at a time, and Wangen said that increase has coincided with the Trump administration’s push for more immigration enforcement.

“They’re being apprehended in the Midwest. They’re being housed here until they move to the next facility,” Major Wangen said.

Wangen said the detention center agreed to house more detainees because they have the space for them and because it’s a way for the jail to generate more income.

“We are compensated for housing them, so there’s not a negative financial impact on our communities, to service these contracts and house for other agencies. It actually becomes beneficial because if we have beds with no inmates in them, it increases our daily cost. If we fill some of those beds with contract inmates, it actually helps compensate and pay for our fixed costs, which then ultimately makes it a cheaper facility to operate for the expense to our local taxpayers,” Major Wangen said.

Wangen said ultimately, it comes down to the agency’s main goal.

“We’re always looking at public safety, and if we can help other agencies out, we’re always willing to, and ICE is one of those agencies,” Major Wangen said.

He said they’re looking into hiring more jail staff to help address inmate housing needs in the state overall, because while they have the space, they may not have enough hands to manage more inmates.