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ROMULUS, Mich. (FOX 2) - City council members in Romulus have agreed to enter a lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Big picture view:
On Monday, March 23, the Romulus City Council unanimously approved a motion to enter into a lawsuit with Attorney General Nessel against the DHS, ICE and the Director of Homeland Security.
Romulus is the home of Detroit Metro Airport (DTW).
This comes after the Romulus City Council unanimously approved a resolution that opposes the operation of an ICE facility in the city limits. They cited several financial, moral and possibly legal complications. This would include decreased property values and zoning ordinances.
State Senator Darrin Camilleri said on Feb. 23, the warehouse, located near the Detroit Metro Airport on Cogswell Street, is part of the federal government's push to expand ICE activity and expedite deportations. This push would allow for the detainment of tens of thousands of people across the U.S.
Romulus Mayor Robert McCraight wrote a letter to Homeland Security and ICE detailing their disapproval of the facility. You can read that and other lawmaker responses by tapping here.
Dig deeper:
Meanwhile, airports across the country have dealt with increasing TSA wait times since Congress has yet to approve a funding bill for the DHS, leading to a partial shutdown.
DHS said at least 376 TSA agents have quit since the partial shutdown began Feb. 14.
Over the weekend, President Donald Trump said he would use federal immigration officers to help field long airport security lines unless Democrats agreed on a bill to fund the DHS. However, none have been sent to DTW as of Monday evening.
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Travelers wary of potential ICE presence at DTW
More federal immigration officers head to US airports to assist TSA during a partial government shutdown. So far, ICE has not been deployed to DTW.
What's next:
The City of Romulus is expected to hold a press conference Tuesday morning at Romulus City Hall.
No further details have been made by city officials.
FOX 2 will update this report as we learn more.
The Source: FOX 2 used information from the City of Romulus and previous reporting for this story.