New Jersey state police arrest protesters outside Delaney Hall, which is being used as an Immigration detention center, during a curfew, in Newark, New Jersey, on May 31, 2026. Photo by Eduardo Munoz/AFP via Getty Images
New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill on June 4 announced a $12 million increase to the state’s fund for immigrant legal defense and a new effort to recruit volunteer attorneys, steps her administration framed as protecting due process amid federal immigration enforcement.
The money raises the state’s Detention Deportation Defense Initiative to $20.2 million, which the state said would double its services and cover all low-income detainees at Delaney Hall in Newark. A separate program will train volunteer lawyers to take on emergency cases challenging detentions in federal court.