Carson demands answers on potential migrant detention at Indiana’s Camp Atterbury

After rumors that federal officials are considering using Camp Atterbury as an immigration detention center, Indiana Congressman André Carson says he is concerned.

He said he first found out about the idea from the news and is worried about the issue’s potential to be used as a political tool. 

“My deeper concern is that because this issue is so controversial, we could see people use this as a political tool to make a very dangerous political statement,” he said. “And people could get hurt in the process.”

In an open letter to Homeland Security Director Kristi Noem on Wednesday, Carson asked several questions “to better understand the Department of Homeland Security's intentions and to ensure transparency and accountability.”

He asked Noem’s department to confirm whether there are plans to use the Indiana’s National Guard Training base to hold detainees. And if that is the plan, to provide a timeline, explain legal and ethical frameworks for treatment of detainees, oversights in place at Atterbury, and the effect it will have on the base’s military training and operations.

The Migration Policy Institute reports “ICE arrest rates have approximately doubled since FY 2024, increasing from 310 to about 650 per day as of mid-March.”

Congress allocated funds for 41,500 detention beds this year, and DHS data from May 18 counted 48,870 people in detention. 

A memo from the DHS earlier this year relayed plans to use Fort Bliss in Texas for detention and removal of people without documentation. 

The Department of Homeland Security said it is “exploring all options” to meet detention needs. But the Indiana National Guard has not received orders related to use of Camp Atterbury.

Carson’s letter asks the DHS to respond by June 13. 

At that point, depending on what answers he receives, he said his next step could be talking to President Trump and his team and working within congressional committees.

The Department of Defense oversees U.S. military bases. But Congress does have influence over funding and personnel levels.

“The influence is there,” Carson said. “And members of the delegation have the power of the purse, the power of the budget, the power to influence policies. And these policies are cruel and inhumane.”

He said the President has responded to concerns lawmakers have raised in other areas, including tariff policies.