New ICE Facility Could Speed Up Deportations for Families, Children

ICE Plans 528-Bed Holding Facility Near Alexandria Airport for Families and Children

The Trump administration plans to open a 528-bed holding facility for migrant families and unaccompanied children next to an airport hub in Alexandria, Louisiana. The site is intended to serve as a short-term staging area for individuals awaiting deportation flights.

The location at the former England Air Force Base would address logistical issues involved in transporting children from foster homes and shelters across the country to departure points. In one instance last year, Guatemalan children were awakened at night and transported to Harlingen, Texas, where they waited on an airport tarmac for hours before a federal judge halted their deportation. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has described the Alexandria site as a staging area rather than a detention center, with stays limited to a few days.

Several immigration advocates have raised concerns that children could remain at the facility for longer periods, citing experiences at other federal immigration holding sites. They have also questioned oversight arrangements and the facility’s operational model.

Leecia Welch, chief legal counsel at the nonprofit Children’s Rights, stated that the project expands the deportation system in previously unseen ways and that multiple issues could arise in its operation.

Under federal law, unaccompanied children are placed in the care of state-licensed shelters and foster care programs operated by the Office of Refugee Resettlement within the Department of Health and Human Services. A spokesperson for the England Airpark Authority confirmed that the Office of Refugee Resettlement is not involved in the Alexandria facility.

The facility will instead be operated by the LaSalle Family Foundation, the nonprofit arm of LaSalle Corrections, a private prison contractor. Ralph Hennessy, executive director of the England Airpark Authority, said the site could open as early as August. ICE officials signed a contract last month for construction at the airfield, roughly 175 miles northwest of New Orleans.

Records obtained by The Associated Press indicate the facility will function as a 72-hour holding center for migrants awaiting deportation. Compass Connections, a Texas-based nonprofit that operates shelters for unaccompanied children, was initially selected to assist with operations and presented plans in February. Company president Sonya Thompson later informed the AP that the organization is no longer involved.

Airpark officials have characterized the facility during public meetings as a humanitarian effort for families engaged in self-deportation. Hennessy stated that individuals at the site are volunteering to return home as family units. Immigration advocates have noted that some families and unaccompanied children decide to depart under pressure or without full understanding of available options.

The facility is located adjacent to Alexandria International Airport, which handled more than 4,400 immigration enforcement flights in 2025 according to data from the ICE Flight Monitor, an initiative of Human Rights First. ICE planning documents specify that families and children at the facility remain in ICE legal custody and can only be released at the agency’s direction.

Contractor instructions direct that families not be referred to as prisoners, detainees, or inmates. The agency has prohibited the use of bars or cages during transport, eliminated requirements for headcounts, and directed that families be permitted to wear their own clothing.

LaSalle Corrections operates multiple private prisons and federal immigration detention centers in the South, including the Louisiana Lockup at the state’s maximum-security prison in Angola. The LaSalle Family Foundation’s tax records show it provides chaplain services and educational programming in correctional facilities. LaSalle Corrections chief financial officer Tim Kurpiewski confirmed in an email that the company itself will participate in operating the holding facility and ensuring compliance.

LaSalle spokesperson Scott Sutterfield declined to comment. Two deaths of detainees have been reported since April at a LaSalle-run ICE facility in Louisiana. The Winn Correctional Center was also cited in June for violations of standards on environmental health and safety, food service, use of force, medical care, and other areas, according to the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General report OIG-26-08. Additional information on deaths in ICE custody and facility inspection outcomes is available in DHS OIG reports.

The facility will sit at the England Airpark next to the airport, which serves as a primary hub for removal flights. ICE has directed contractors to maintain specific operational standards for the short-term holding of families and children prior to departure.