Democrats pay visit to ICE detention facility where abuse claims rife | California
Two California lawmakers on Thursday conducted an oversight visit to the Otay Mesa detention center, ICE’s immigration detention center. overcrowded, bad conditions And sexual assaults.
The visit was planned before. But Democratic Congressman Mike Levin told the Guardian he plans to carry out more unannounced visits following a federal court decision that struck down the Trump administration’s policy of forcing members of Congress to announce surveillance visits seven days in advance.
“It’s really critical that we continue to come unannounced as often as possible to make sure that basic human dignity is respected,” Levin said in an interview after the visit. “I’m not one to just take the word of those involved. I’m going to go out there and find out for myself.”
Otay Mesa is operated as a for-profit business by CoreCivic, the nation’s largest private prison contractor. The facility, located in San Diego near the U.S.-Mexico border, has the capacity to incarcerate 1,500 immigration detainees.
Levin cited a long list of humanitarian concerns about the facility, including access to medical care, food, uninterrupted sleep, family visitation and access to legal counsel.
“We read all kinds of stories,” Levin said. “We get information from voters”
Levin said his office has repeatedly had problems with detainees struggling to find and sign privacy waivers that members of Congress need to help them with their cases. Congresswoman Sara Jacobs, also a Democrat, toured the facility with him.
About 1,037 detainees were locked in the facility at the time of the visit, Levin said. The vast majority of detainees he and Jacobs saw wore blue uniforms; This showed that they had no serious criminal history or behavioral problems.
Members of Congress toured the medical facilities, dining hall, courtrooms and commissaries. Levin said the facility appeared clean and the food appeared edible.
There is also allegations of rape or sexual assault in the detention center and CalMatters latest report Questions arise about why the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office declined to investigate seven claims Last year, Otay Mesa staff were allowed to handle cases.
Levin declined to comment on the sexual assault allegations until he had a chance to meet with San Diego sheriff Kelly Martinez.
CoreCivic also I am facing a lawsuit San Diego County health inspectors said they were denied entry to Otay Mesa to conduct a state-required inspection.
CoreCivic did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The surveillance visit comes as the Trump administration increases detention capacity across the country as part of its mass deportation campaign. The number of immigrants imprisoned in detention centers rose to more than 68,000 last month, from about 42,000 in the last month of the Biden administration.
