New revelations surface as Trump reaffirms his commitment to carrying out widespread deportations.
Newly acquired records, disclosed by the ACLU, indicate that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is currently evaluating plans to enhance its immigration detention capabilities in six states nationwide. These states include California, Kansas, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and Washington state.
According to documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed by the ACLU in September 2024, it has been revealed that private prison corporations and other corporate entities involved in providing services for temporary facilities, compliance monitoring, and staffing, submitted proposals to expand immigration detention in response to ICE’s contract requests. This discovery comes shortly after the ACLU received its initial batch of FOIA documents, which unveiled ICE’s plans to potentially expand detention in three different facilities located in New Jersey.
A photographer captures the realities of immigration and life inside a detention facility in a compelling video. The footage provides a powerful visual narrative of the experiences and challenges faced by individuals in these facilities. The video sheds light on the human stories behind the headlines and gives viewers a glimpse into the lives of those affected by immigration policies. Through his lens, the photographer captures the emotions, struggles, and resilience of the individuals living in the detention facility. This moving portrayal serves as a reminder of the importance of compassion and understanding in addressing the complex issue of immigration. Watch the video to gain a deeper understanding of the realities faced by those navigating the immigration system.
A Talented Photographer Captures Immigration and Life Inside Detention Facility
According to Eunice Cho, a senior staff attorney at the ACLU’s National Prison Project, the incoming Trump administration is planning to expand ICE detention capacity in various states in order to carry out mass deportations. Cho criticizes the Biden administration for not permanently shutting down abusive detention facilities, which she believes paves the way for President-elect Donald Trump to implement his cruel and inhumane mass deportation proposals.
According to the recently released FOIA documents, GEO Group, Inc., CoreCivic, and the Management & Training Corporation (MTC) responded to Requests for Information (RFI) with contract proposals to increase detention capacity and facilities. It is worth noting that some of these facilities have a troubling record of abusive conditions. The proposals for expanding immigration detention facilities encompass the following:
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- Midwest Regional Reception Center in Leavenworth, KS – formerly known as Leavenworth Detention Center – which has a track record of abusive conditions, which led the federal government to end its contract with the facility in 2021.
- South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, TX – a facility where children as young as 19 months have died as a result poor medical care.
- Nevada Southern Detention Center in Pahrump, NV – which has been subject to a federal invesitgation for medical negligence, racial discrimination, and verbal abuse of detained people.
- Cibola County Correctional Center in Milan, NM —which has been the site of numerous deaths in recent years, with incidents of neglect, abuse, and lack of medical care.
- Torrance County Detention Facility in Estancia, NM – which Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General cited in 2022 due to poor conditions.
- California City Correctional Center in California City, CA – which was previously used as a California Department of Corrections prison until March 2024.
ICE has chosen to withhold certain documents in its FOIA disclosure, making it difficult to determine the names of the specific facilities. Nevertheless, the documents that have been released suggest that ICE is considering the following detention facilities for undisclosed purposes:
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- Lea County Correctional Facility in Hobbs, NM (Proposal by GEO Group, Inc. for the El Paso Field Office)
- Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, WA (Proposal by GEO Group, Inc. for the Seattle Field Office)
- Golden State Annex in McFarland, CA (Proposal by GEO Group, Inc. for the San Francisco Field Office)
- Mesa Verde Detention Center in Bakersfield, CA (Proposal by GEO Group, Inc. for the San Francisco Field Office)
- MTC facility in South Texas, which may include the Willacy County Jail in Raymondville, TX (Proposal by MTC for the Harlingen Field Office)
- GEO Group, Inc. facility in IL, IN, WI, MI, KT, or KS (Proposal by GEO Group, Inc. for Chicago Field Office)
- GEO Group, Inc. facility in South Texas, which may include the Brooks County Detention Center, Falfurrias, TX; Coastal Bend Detention Center, Robstown, TX; or the East Hidalgo Detention Center in LaVilla, TX (Proposal by GEO Group, Inc. For the Harlingen Field Office)
Kastel Enterprises, LLC., and Active Deployment Systems, both of which offer temporary facility construction services, along with Sabot Consulting, a provider of compliance monitoring and detention staffing services, have also submitted their responses to ICE’s request.
The federal government’s immigration detention system heavily depends on private prison corporations, as highlighted by the ACLU. Over the past two decades, corporations such as GEO Group, CoreCivic, LaSalle Corrections, and the Management & Training Corporation have profited billions of dollars from ICE detention contracts.
The FOIA records can be accessed on the ACLU website at www.aclu.org/documents/multi-state-detention-facility-support-foia-documents-request-for-information.
To access the ACLU’s 2020 report titled “Justice-Free Zones: US Immigration Detention Under the Trump Administration,” you can visit their website at www.aclu.org/publications/justice-free-zones-us-immigration-detention-under-trump-administration.
Eunice Hyunhye Cho, a Senior Staff Attorney at the ACLU National Prison Project, specializes in addressing unconstitutional conditions in US immigration detention facilities and the growing expansion of immigration detention. Before joining the NPP, Eunice served as a Staff Attorney at the ACLU of Washington, where she successfully litigated cases that focused on protecting the rights of immigrants in detention, incarcerated individuals, and students with disabilities.
