KSHB 41 reporter Rachel Henderson covers neighborhoods in Wyandotte and Leavenworth counties. Share your story idea with Rachel.
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Now that there is an ICE detention facility in Leavenworth, supporters and opponents are looking for ways to hold CoreCivic accountable.
The city granted CoreCivic a special use permit on March 10, which required the creation of the CoreCivic Community Relations Advisory Board.
The 14-member board — which includes CoreCivic representatives, immigration attorneys and city officials — held its first introductory meeting on March 31.
You can read the full list of members on the city's website.
Ryan Gustin, senior director of public affairs for CoreCivic, shared that CoreCivic offered a facility tour for any board member who wished to see inside. He also shared an update on staffing.
“At the beginning of the year, we had more than 5,400 unique applicants who submitted nearly 8,100 applications for positions at MRRC, and approximately 280 employees have already been hired,” Gustin wrote in an email. “Staff receive extensive training, including specialty and reality-based drills, with many gaining additional experience at CoreCivic facilities across the country. Our assistant warden, who spent 33 years in federal corrections — including as warden of the U.S. Federal Penitentiary Leavenworth — has described the training, organizational structure and security procedures at MRRC as thorough, detailed and consistent with the best he’s seen in his career.”
The facility is working with several groups, including Sisters of Charity, to provide training and obtain the required clearances for those individuals who would like to volunteer at MRRC.
Ashley Hernandez, president of the Carceral Accountability Council and organizing/policy coordinator for the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, spent the past year fighting against CoreCivic.
Both of her organizations hold seats on the advisory board.
"It felt like it was for nothing in the moment, but we did a lot of work that meant something to this community," Hernandez said.
After the city’s vote, she approached the facility’s warden directly to build a relationship.
"I reached out to Misty at one of the commission meetings, and she’s been very open and communicative,” Hernandez said. “She offered me a tour within the facility.”
According to Gustin, Warden Misty Mackey has continued to engage with “key stakeholders,” such as elected officials, city representatives and members of the community relations board.
He shared that a meet-and-greet luncheon was held at the facility with Leavenworth Police Chief Pat Kitchens and other members of the Leavenworth Police Department.
“Warden Mackey has also attended the quarterly Law Enforcement and Corrections luncheon,” Gustin wrote. “The facility has sponsored several community events, such as the Feed Leavenworth Coalition Mental Health Block Party, American Legion Baseball, and a CASA fundraising event.”
Hernandez said there are around 225 detainees inside the facility as of Monday.
The facility can hold up to 1,104 inmates at a time.
Hernandez's organizations are working to provide pastoral and recreational care, raise funds for mutual aid, and explore a potential hotline for detainees and staff.
"This is not a ‘one-and-done’ campaign,” Hernandez said. “This isn’t, ‘Oh, we didn’t stop CoreCivic from opening, and we can move on to the next issue.’ These detainees are now within our community, whether you’re on the oversight committee or not."
However, Leavenworth resident Suzanne Sievers said she has seen the opposite of open communication.
Sievers, who has been in the community since last summer, believes the board's meetings should be public under the Kansas Open Meetings Act.
"I care a lot about what the city can do to be transparent, but I also just [care] a lot about the people in the facility," Sievers said. "Because they’re human beings."
She's been vocal at commission meetings even after the vote.
There's another commission meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday.
"It took CoreCivic two days to have detainees into the facility, and the oversight board, to our knowledge, has not met publicly once," Sievers said. "It’s very discouraging to get a lot of no information, a lot of secrecy, lack of transparency; they weren’t releasing board names for a long time.”
The city’s announcement of the board online and the official list of members were published weeks apart.
Sievers and others took issue with that.
"The public is relying on rumor and what we think is going on and going through secondary organizations to try to understand who’s housed in the facility, how can we support them, is anyone being released from the facility?" Sievers said. "We want to make sure there is not a sentinel event that causes us to then say, ‘Oh no, we need to react and investigate,’ and instead get ahead and say, ‘No, we’re making sure that you’re doing things by the book on day one.’”
Rev. Victoria Parker-Mothershed, pastor of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, also sits on the board.
She previously protested against the facility.
"Getting the call to say, ‘Hey, we want you on the board.’ I’m like, ‘Wait, what?’ you know, because I’m out here like, ‘No, we don’t want this,’" Parker-Mothershed said. "It’s an honor, too, at the same time to be able to say, ‘Okay then, we can actually hold their feet to the fire.’ That’s how I look at it."
Parker-Mothershed noted her church was a stop on the Underground Railroad and is celebrating 167 years this year.
She drew parallels between people seeking freedom then and immigrants seeking a better life now.
"You’re just kind of repeating history, it’s just a different group of people," Parker-Mothershed said.
All three women agreed on the responsibility to care for the detainees.
A CoreCivic spokesperson said the next advisory board meeting is tentatively scheduled for the end of this month.
The city did not respond to a request for comment in time for the on-air broadcast, but did share responses to questions via email Tuesday evening.
City Manager Scott Peterson wrote the following responses to questions KSHB 41's Rachel Henderson received from community members:
- How does the city plan to address the community’s frustration that it’s taking so long for the board to meet publicly and advise the city on oversight matters? We sincerely appreciate the patience of the Leavenworth community as we work to get the Community Relations Board established and meeting on a regular basis. Forming a group of this nature and ensuring compliance with all applicable laws takes time and thoughtful effort. We are very close to the group holding its first meeting, with more information to come in the next few days. In the meantime, the City and CoreCivic have stayed in constant communication regarding the re-opening of their facility in Leavenworth. City staff, police leadership, and city attorneys have all had conversations with CoreCivic representatives to ensure compliance with the approved Special Use Permit. CoreCivic has maintained open and transparent dialogue with the City throughout this time regarding the reopening of the facility and its operations.
- When can the community expect the first board meeting? I do not have a specific date for you at the moment, but that will likely change in the coming days.
- If it is held, as rumored, on the last Tuesday of each month, does the city feel CoreCivic is out ahead of the city’s oversight if the facility has been open for over two months before the board has even had its initial meeting? The Community Relations Board does not provide any direct oversight to CoreCivic or the Special Use Permit. They are an advisory board who have graciously agreed to volunteer their knowledge and expertise to assist the City in ensuring the fair and equitable treatment of everyone in the facility — including detainees, inmates, employees, and even visitors. However, the enforcement power will always remain with the City. As such, there has been no delay in oversight or enforcement of the Special Use Permit while we make every effort to get the community relations board up and running.
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