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Ghazala Hashmi backs Hanover County’s move to block ICE facility
The lieutenant governor said the proposed facility lacked transparency and local input.
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Staff Reporter - Thu, 29, Jan 2026
- 14:59 EST
- 20
Lieutenant Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia, Ghazala Hashmi. / Lieutenant Governor of Virginia (ltgov.virginia.gov/)
Virginia Lieutenant Governor Ghazala Hashmi backed the Hanover County Board of Supervisors’ decision to reject a proposed large-scale Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention and processing facility in the county.
Her statement follows a Jan. 28 meeting where the board formally opposed the federal government’s plan to establish an ICE facility in the county.Hashmi said she supports the board’s decision and urged opposition to any other detention facilities in the county.
Also Read: Thanedar and Krishnamoorthi fume over ICE detentions
“I support the decision of the Hanover County Board of Supervisors to reject the proposed ICE site and strongly urge opposition to any other detention facilities within the county,” Hashmi said underscoring the proposal was advanced “without transparency, without local input, and without regard for its impact on the community.”
— Lt. Governor Ghazala Hashmi (@ltgovhashmi) January 29, 2026
According to Hashmi, such facilities cause “real harms,” including family separation, insufficient regulation and safety standards, and a “chilling effect” on communities, schools, local law enforcement and fundamental human rights.
“Moreover, large-scale detention has raised persistent legal concerns, particularly when oversight, standards of care, and due process protections are lacking,” she said, warning that such projects create “substantial legal and financial risk for states and localities.”
She also said expanding detention infrastructure diverts resources away from what she described as effective approaches, including “the rule of law, accountability, and transparency,” while doing little to address challenges within the immigration system.
The opposition centres on a proposal by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to purchase a 43-acre warehouse property at 11525 Lakeridge Parkway for use as an ICE detention and processing facility.
County officials said they were informed of the plan in a Jan. 22 letter from DHS and were not consulted during the site selection process.
Board of supervisors chair Sean Davis said the proposed facility is not consistent with the land’s established use in a business, residential and commercial area.
County officials have also acknowledged that their ability to block the project is limited because the federal government is generally exempt from local zoning regulations.
Despite that, the board has directed county staff and legal counsel to formally communicate Hanover’s land-use policies to federal authorities and to seek support from state and congressional representatives for an alternative location.
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