Leavenworth Kansas

The city commission voted to grant a permit allowing private corrections company CoreCivic to hold over 1,000 federal immigration detainees in a shuttered facility.

Tuesday’s meeting was one of the last chances for opponents and supporters of the proposed immigration detention center to testify. Leavenworth, Kansas, officials plan a vote to approve or deny a permit request in the coming weeks.

A planning commission in Leavenworth recommended granting CoreCivic a permit to open a detention center, but with qualifications. The final decision will be left to the city’s commission.

The private prison company had previously argued it didn't need a permit to operate the now-idle prison as a detention center for immigration detainees. Now, CoreCivic says it will apply for the special use permit.

The federal government joined the private prison company CoreCivic in its legal fight against the city of Leavenworth, which has been fighting in court to stop the reopening of a controversial detention center for immigrants.

Private prison company CoreCivic is temporarily barred from holding detainees at its dormant Leavenworth facility. Yet preparations to reopen are going full steam ahead.

The Trump administration's budget bill authorizes $45 billion for more detention centers like the one CoreCivic plans in Leavenworth, Kansas. Groups around Kansas City have organized demonstrations against the ICE facility.

The city of Leavenworth, Kansas, has netted a momentary victory in its battle to force private prison operator CoreCivic to follow the city’s interpretation of local rules. The company wants to house detainees for federal immigration authorities — without a city permit.

A U.S. District Court judge ruled in favor of a private prison company that plans to use its troubled Leavenworth facility for immigration detention. The city argued CoreCivic should follow local laws first.

A memo from President Trump earlier this year revealed plans to remove transgender service members from the military — a plan the Supreme Court has allowed to be enforced while the legal battle plays out. Thousands of transgender service members now face the possible end of their careers.