California attorney general asks for a review of ruling that blocked a ban on private jails

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California’s attorney general has asked the full 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reconsider a ruling that rejected the state’s first-in-the-nation ban on for-profit private prisons and immigration detention facilities.

The ruling last month by a three-judge appellate panel kept in place a key piece of the world’s largest detention system for immigrants — despite a 2019 state law aimed at phasing out privately-run immigration jails in California by 2028.

“They treat people like commodities, they pose an unacceptable risk to the health and welfare of Californians, they prioritize profits over rehabilitation — making us all less safe,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta, who wrote the law back in 2019.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and The Geo Group Inc., which sued California over the law, did not not immediately respond to emails seeking comment about Bonta’s request for the new review.

The three appellate judges, in a split decision, ruled that the state law interferes with the federal government’s authority.

The law was originally passed as one of numerous efforts by California Democrats to limit the state’s cooperation with the federal government on immigration enforcement under the Trump administration.