IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — The rural jail that has long been the largest detention facility for immigrants facing deportation in Iowa plans to stop housing long-term detainees without additional federal funding or other changes.
The Hardin County Jail has informed the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement that it plans to end its current contract, citing a declining detainee population and new standards that have dramatically increased costs for medical care and suicide prevention. Negotiations between the federal agency and the jail are ongoing, and administrator Nick Whitmore says no changes are expected to happen imminently.
