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Inhumane Conditions for Immigration Detainees, Reports ACLU of Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona – The U.S. government’s heavy reliance on
immigration detention has led to inhumane conditions in Arizona’s
five immigration detention centers, unnecessary and prolonged
detention and abusive treatment of immigrants, according to a new
report by the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona released
today. The 36-page report, “In Their Own Words: Enduring Abuse in
Arizona Immigration Detention Centers,” is the most comprehensive
report documenting the experiences of immigrants detained by the
federal government in Arizona.
“Many of the men and women that we spoke to are needlessly
detained for many months to several years in terrible conditions that
jeopardize their safety and well-being,” said ACLU of Arizona staff
attorney Victoria Lopez, who authored the report based on 115 face-
to-face interviews conducted with people detained in Eloy and
Florence, Arizona over a two-year period from March 2009 through
March 2011. “Until there is independent oversight and monitoring of
facilities where immigration detainees are held, detainees have no
choice but to speak up for themselves.”
As part of the ACLU’s documentation efforts, Lopez spent countless
hours corresponding with detainees, interviewing their family
members, and culling through hundreds of government records,
including more than 500 grievances. The report illustrates the real
stories of people, including vulnerable women and transgender
detainees, who have suffered from abuses related to inhumane
conditions and inadequate legal protections while detained.
According to the report, flawed immigration policies, including local
immigration enforcement, have led to a 58% increase in immigration
detention in Arizona over the past six years. In addition, because
there are no legally-enforceable standards and the majority of
immigration detention centers in Arizona are operated by either
private corporations or a local county jail, there is very little oversight
over the delivery of medical care, grievance procedures, and overall
treatment of detainees.
One of the cases cited by the ACLU in its report documents the story
of Leticia, a single mother of two U.S. citizen children with no criminal
history who was detained for almost two years by Immigration and
Customs Enforcement (ICE) at the Pinal County Jail (PCJ), which is
operated by Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu. During most of that
time, she was not allowed contact visits with her children or outdoor
recreation and endured deplorable conditions.
Despite statements by the Department of Homeland Security almost
two years ago indicating initiatives to reform the immigration
detention system, major failures persist in the Arizona facilities, the
ACLU said. Among its recommendations, the ACLU-AZ called on ICE
to terminate its contract with PCJ, which received “deficient” ratings
in 2007, 2008 and 2009, and where the ACLU documented the most
egregious examples of human rights abuses.
For example, in the winter 2010, ICE transferred hundreds of
immigrant women out of PCJ after the women submitted petition
letters complaining of abusive treatment by guards, insufficient
hygiene supplies, and poor medical treatment. In the spring 2011,
men detained at the same jail began a hunger strike to protest many
of the same problems. Over the course of the past year, the ACLU-AZ
has also received reports from PCJ involving excessive use of force
against detainees and jail officials’ failure to accommodate detainees’
religious needs.
“No amount of cosmetic fixes will take care of the fact that
immigration detention presents major fiscal and human costs for
immigrants and citizens alike,” added Lopez. “DHS should take
immediate steps to end its contract with Pinal County Jail officials
who aren’t being held accountable and operate a facility that fails to
meet even minimum constitutional standards."
With 3,000 people detained on any given day in ICE facilities in
Arizona, the ACLU-AZ also called on the federal government to
reduce the number of people subjected to detention in Arizona by
utilizing more cost-effective alternatives to detention and ensure
that conditions in Arizona detention facilities comport with basic
human rights and needs.
immigration detention has led to inhumane conditions in Arizona’s
five immigration detention centers, unnecessary and prolonged
detention and abusive treatment of immigrants, according to a new
report by the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona released
today. The 36-page report, “In Their Own Words: Enduring Abuse in
Arizona Immigration Detention Centers,” is the most comprehensive
report documenting the experiences of immigrants detained by the
federal government in Arizona.
“Many of the men and women that we spoke to are needlessly
detained for many months to several years in terrible conditions that
jeopardize their safety and well-being,” said ACLU of Arizona staff
attorney Victoria Lopez, who authored the report based on 115 face-
to-face interviews conducted with people detained in Eloy and
Florence, Arizona over a two-year period from March 2009 through
March 2011. “Until there is independent oversight and monitoring of
facilities where immigration detainees are held, detainees have no
choice but to speak up for themselves.”
As part of the ACLU’s documentation efforts, Lopez spent countless
hours corresponding with detainees, interviewing their family
members, and culling through hundreds of government records,
including more than 500 grievances. The report illustrates the real
stories of people, including vulnerable women and transgender
detainees, who have suffered from abuses related to inhumane
conditions and inadequate legal protections while detained.
According to the report, flawed immigration policies, including local
immigration enforcement, have led to a 58% increase in immigration
detention in Arizona over the past six years. In addition, because
there are no legally-enforceable standards and the majority of
immigration detention centers in Arizona are operated by either
private corporations or a local county jail, there is very little oversight
over the delivery of medical care, grievance procedures, and overall
treatment of detainees.
One of the cases cited by the ACLU in its report documents the story
of Leticia, a single mother of two U.S. citizen children with no criminal
history who was detained for almost two years by Immigration and
Customs Enforcement (ICE) at the Pinal County Jail (PCJ), which is
operated by Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu. During most of that
time, she was not allowed contact visits with her children or outdoor
recreation and endured deplorable conditions.
Despite statements by the Department of Homeland Security almost
two years ago indicating initiatives to reform the immigration
detention system, major failures persist in the Arizona facilities, the
ACLU said. Among its recommendations, the ACLU-AZ called on ICE
to terminate its contract with PCJ, which received “deficient” ratings
in 2007, 2008 and 2009, and where the ACLU documented the most
egregious examples of human rights abuses.
For example, in the winter 2010, ICE transferred hundreds of
immigrant women out of PCJ after the women submitted petition
letters complaining of abusive treatment by guards, insufficient
hygiene supplies, and poor medical treatment. In the spring 2011,
men detained at the same jail began a hunger strike to protest many
of the same problems. Over the course of the past year, the ACLU-AZ
has also received reports from PCJ involving excessive use of force
against detainees and jail officials’ failure to accommodate detainees’
religious needs.
“No amount of cosmetic fixes will take care of the fact that
immigration detention presents major fiscal and human costs for
immigrants and citizens alike,” added Lopez. “DHS should take
immediate steps to end its contract with Pinal County Jail officials
who aren’t being held accountable and operate a facility that fails to
meet even minimum constitutional standards."
With 3,000 people detained on any given day in ICE facilities in
Arizona, the ACLU-AZ also called on the federal government to
reduce the number of people subjected to detention in Arizona by
utilizing more cost-effective alternatives to detention and ensure
that conditions in Arizona detention facilities comport with basic
human rights and needs.
Press Release Junio 23, 2011
The report points out that flawed
immigration policies, including local
immigration enforcement, have led
to a 58% increase in immigration
detention in Arizona over the past
six years. Read Report
Photo by Eduardo Barraza | Barriozona
immigration policies, including local
immigration enforcement, have led
to a 58% increase in immigration
detention in Arizona over the past
six years. Read Report
Photo by Eduardo Barraza | Barriozona
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