THE PITCH ARTICLE: KC Voices: Our communities are not for sale, and Leavenworth is standing strong against ICE’s private prison
By Mike Trapp - 5/5/2025
This article was originally published in The Pitch Magazine in Kansas City, Missouri. Click Here to check out the original article.
Who runs our towns — the people who live here, or billion-dollar corporations who think they’re above the law?
In Leavenworth, Kansas, that question is being put to the test.
CoreCivic, the second-largest private prison company in America, is trying to force its way back into our community — despite two unanimous votes by local officials and overwhelming public opposition. Their tactic? Ignore local zoning laws, override the will of the people, and dare us to stop them.
This isn’t just about a shuttered prison. It’s part of a disturbing national trend: corporations deciding the rules don’t apply to them. That their money and lawyers give them the right to steamroll local governments and treat communities like they're disposable.
CoreCivic wants to reopen its Leavenworth facility as an ICE detention center — the same facility shut down in 2021 after the federal government canceled its contract with them. And for good reason.
In 2017, U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson described the facility as “an absolute hellhole.” A federal audit found one in four staff positions vacant, leaving units unsupervised and dangerous. Weapons and contraband were rampant. Even when short staffed the bulk of their Special Operations Response Team which addresses disturbances were reassigned to another facility which was also understaffed. The failures weren’t just bureaucratic — they were violent.
One guard was stabbed and beaten so severely she needed sixteen surgeries. As she still struggles with a difficult recovery her worker’s comp payments are coming to an end, leaving her in poverty. Another employee had his head split open by an inmate while covering multiple units alone. Even before the shutdown, CoreCivic was caught faking inspection results by removing beds ahead of audits to hide overcrowding.
This isn’t a company that makes mistakes — it’s a company that commits fraud.
Meanwhile, CoreCivic’s CEO, Damon Hininger, hauls in nearly $6 million a year, profiting from a business model that relies on understaffing, neglect, and treating both workers and communities as expendable.
Leavenworth said no — twice. First the county commission rejected CoreCivic. Then the city commission notified CoreCivic they would need a Special Use Permit to reopen their long-shuttered facility. After first filing for the permit, they did not expect the intense community backlash. Facing three bruising public hearings and another looming defeat, CoreCivic abruptly changed tactics, claiming they didn’t need permission at all.
Their argument? That an empty, non-operational facility — abandoned for going on four years — somehow still counts as “in use” because a skeleton crew kept the lights on. It’s laughable on its face. And dangerous if allowed to stand.
The Leavenworth City Commission didn’t back down. They passed a resolution reaffirming that CoreCivic must obtain a Special Use Permit to operate — and pledged to defend the city’s right to regulate land use through every legal means available.
Now, CoreCivic has made its position crystal clear: they plan to reopen the facility without a permit.
Leavenworth is taking them to court to stop them.
But CoreCivic isn’t just defying local government. After losing public support, they’ve launched an aggressive PR blitz — pumping money into ads trying to reframe the issue as "outsiders" stopping "local jobs," even though opposition has been led by Leavenworth residents themselves. They’re hoping to muddy the waters and paint themselves as the underdog, not the billion-dollar corporation trying to bulldoze a small town.
They also filed a cease-and-desist letter against William Rogers, a former CoreCivic employee who has been bravely speaking out about the company’s abuses. Rogers, who suffered a brutal assault inside the Leavenworth facility due to chronic understaffing, has continued to tell the truth despite retaliation. CoreCivic’s attempt to silence him speaks volumes about their real respect for free speech — and for the workers they claim to care about.
This fight in Leavenworth isn’t happening in isolation. It’s part of a broader strategy by ICE and private prison companies to expand detention infrastructure in rural America — often betting that small communities, desperate for economic development or dominated by Trump-aligned leadership, won’t push back.
The strategy is simple: move into places where corporate influence can outmuscle local resistance. Pitch detention centers as “jobs programs” while brushing aside the violence, mismanagement, and human rights abuses that come with them.
But Leavenworth proves that rural America isn’t a pushover. Residents spoke out, organized, and demanded accountability. Local elected officials listened — and stood firm, despite corporate pressure.
What happens next will matter far beyond Leavenworth. If CoreCivic can override local land use decisions here, it will embolden similar moves across Kansas, Missouri, and the Midwest. If they lose, it will send a powerful message that even billion-dollar corporations can be held accountable by determined communities.
Now is the time to stand with the Leavenworth City Commission and other small-town leaders who are standing up for democratic governance, public safety, and local control. Thank them. Support them. Encourage them to hold the line.
Because this fight isn’t just about zoning laws. It’s about something much bigger.
It’s about who gets to decide the future of our towns: the people who live there — or corporations that see our communities as nothing more than assets to be strip-mined for profit.
Our communities are not for sale.
Not now. Not ever.
