The New Hampshire Attorney General’s office found that the director of the state’s Division of Historical Resources, Benjamin Wilson, failed to properly notify state officials about communications with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement over plans for a detention center in Merrimack, despite intense public scrutiny.
In a report released Friday, the AG’s office said it did not find any evidence of “nefarious intent” on Wilson’s part, but criticized his failure to alert his superiors about the ICE plan. The report also made several recommendations to strengthen communication and increase transparency within the division.
At the request of Gov. Kelly Ayotte, the AG’s office launched an investigation in February into interactions within the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, which houses Wilson’s division, with ICE and the New Hampshire chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Ayotte made the request after the ACLU of New Hampshire published communications between staff in the Division of Historical Resources and ICE, which it obtained through a public records request.
The emails were the first official confirmation that federal immigration officials were seeking to convert a vacant Merrimack warehouse into a immigration detention center. The Washington Post had reported a leaked draft plan in December.
Wilson’s supervisor, former commissioner of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources Sarah Stewart, resigned at the governor’s request shortly after the publication of the documents.
But the report found that Stewart had no knowledge of any communication between her staff and ICE, prior to the ACLU’s publication.
The investigation found that there was no “nefarious intent on Director Wilson’s part,” and “no evidence to substantiate that any classified staff within DNCR’s Division of Historical Resources provided the ACLU with information or attempted to improperly conceal information from superiors,” according to a memorandum released on Friday. The Attorney General’s office did not recommend a personal investigation or additional disciplinary measures.
The investigation found that Wilson failed to elevate the inquiry from federal immigration enforcement officials, despite the political scrutiny on the project, and that Stewart’s “hands-off approach to leadership did not foster an environment in which her staff had clear expectations of what to report to her.”
The report also criticized Wilson’s handling of the ACLU’s records request, which he responded to the day it was received. According to the report, Wilson told investigators that he responded to the ACLU’s request quickly because “it was his birthday and he was trying to clear off his desk and leave the office to make it to a family dinner celebration.” He told investigators this led to an incomplete response.
The proposed ICE facility was at the center of months of intense scrutiny and backlash, generating sharp criticism from private citizens and public officials of all political backgrounds.
Prior to the Post’s reporting in December, state and Merrimack officials said they had no knowledge of the plan.
In late February, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which houses ICE, announced that it was scrapping plans for the proposed ICE facility in Merrimack.
As part of its investigation, the Attorney General’s office recommended that the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources should centralize its right-to-know request process, and retrain staff on right-to-know procedures. The recommendations also included strengthening the department’s biweekly report to the governor’s office.
According to the report, all state agencies submit biweekly reports detailing activities over a two-week period covering “seven categories, including ‘federal government interactions’ and ‘other items of importance.”
