Hundreds of protesters packed the steps of the Edward A. Garmatz U.S. District Courthouse in downtown Baltimore on Thursday, July 2, urging a federal judge to block a proposed Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing site in Elkridge. Organizers from We Are CASA, other immigrant-rights groups and local lawmakers turned the plaza into a rally space filled with chants, handmade signs and speeches, while attorneys argued inside the courthouse. The demonstration capped months of local controversy over permits, a county emergency ordinance, and a still-unresolved federal lawsuit.
Protesters Turn Out Outside Federal Courthouse
Photographs from the scene show speakers at a podium and sidewalks jammed with demonstrators as chants of “ICE out” echoed off the courthouse façade, according to The Baltimore Sun. The outlet’s images identify Jossie Flor Sapunar at the microphone and Maryland Del. Gabriel Moreno standing among the crowd.
Howard County Revoked A Permit And Passed Emergency Bills
Earlier this year, Howard County officials revoked a building permit for a privately owned conversion project in Elkridge and introduced emergency legislation intended to bar privately owned detention centers, county records show. Howard County Council testimony details residents’ warnings about potential impacts on immigrant neighborhoods, and local coverage summarizes the council vote in a report on the county’s ban on ICE detention centers.
Speakers And Organizers
Organizers used the courthouse rally to press the judge to preserve Howard County’s protections and to highlight conditions inside Baltimore’s existing ICE field office. Jossie Flor Sapunar, identified in event coverage as We Are CASA’s national communications director, addressed the crowd and urged the court to uphold the county’s restrictions, as documented in photos published by The Baltimore Sun.
Federal Lawsuit Clouds The Future
The Elkridge proposal is entangled in federal litigation after Genesis GSA Strategic One LLC sued Howard County, arguing that the emergency law improperly targeted its planned facility. A judge recently deemed parts of that lawsuit moot after the county filed a response and provided the facility’s lease for review, according to CBS Baltimore. The court has not resolved whether permits can be reissued and has given the company a short window to amend its complaint.
Why Protesters Say This Matters
Activists at the courthouse pointed to reporting about cramped holding rooms inside Baltimore’s ICE field office and to the Department of Homeland Security’s reported purchase of a large warehouse near Hagerstown as signs that local permit battles could carry wider consequences, as documented by Baltimore Brew. Organizers said that footage and the federal real estate moves have raised the stakes around county decisions and upcoming court rulings.
What's Next
With new deadlines laid out in court filings, much of the fight will now unfold on paper. Genesis has been given a narrow window to amend its complaint, and the judge has not yet ruled on whether Howard County must reissue permits, CBS Baltimore reports. Organizers say they plan to keep up demonstrations and community outreach until the proposed Elkridge site is definitively blocked.
