Judge Slams ICE Over Detention Conditions at Broadview
In a case nearly identical to that of other detention facilities, ICE has been ordered to meet basic needs at the Broadview Detention Center
On Wednesday, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order that requires Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to immediately improve the “inhumane” and “unnecessarily cruel” conditions at its Broadview, Illinois, processing facility. District Judge Robert Gettleman’s order came after a day of testimony from detainees who described serious cases of neglect, unsanitary conditions, and lack of access to legal assistance.
The details of the case are nearly identical to those that led District Judge Lewis Kaplan to order ICE officials in August to improve conditions at the Federal Plaza detention center in Manhattan. The issues in both cases, alongside the long history of inhumane treatment of migrants, mirror those seen in videos posted on social media in March from the Krome detention center in Miami, Florida, a notoriously horrifying facility.
The Wednesday order defined key requirements that include providing sanitary conditions, hygiene supplies, showers, three full meals a day, access to legal assistance, and barring agents from lying about documents and coercing migrants to sign voluntary deportation orders, all of which have been common occurrences in the U.S. immigration system for years.
According to Judge Gettleman’s order, holding cells must be cleaned at least twice per day, and overflowing toilets must be addressed. Detainees must also be provided with soap, towels, toilet paper, toothbrushes, and toothpaste, and they must be allowed a shower at least once every other day. Additionally, migrants must be provided with three full meals per day instead of two, and have access to bottled water upon request. They should also be allowed to make private, free phone calls to lawyers and be given a list of pro bono attorneys in both English and Spanish.
Testimony revealed that detainees were often given cold sandwiches and ignored when they asked for water, and that agents routinely misrepresented documents for signature, and were pressured to sign voluntary deportation forms to escape the conditions.
For context, the Broadview facility is built more like a jail and was designed for temporary stays of around 12 hours, until detainees are transferred to other facilities. Aggressive immigration enforcement measures have led to detainees being held for several days, or even weeks, in overcrowded, “filthy” conditions, including sleeping next to open or overflowing toilets.
Judge Gettleman requested a compliance report by Friday. This case, along with other more recent cases, represents a broader systemic problem throughout ICE’s network of more than 200 detention centers nationwide. While this case may provide some accountability through the slow-moving legal process, it does not address the lack of accountability of every agency under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
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I appreciate the judges ruling for ICE to institute humane treatment. How are they enforcing it? This whole regime from top to bottom is lawless AF. They ignore court orders like longtime married people do their spouse's complaints. Until these orders have teeth, like fines, incarceration of noncompliant agents found in contempt of court orders or something else, it seems like all of these rulings are just strong suggestions with hope for cooperation.
Say “No” to President Donald Trump: https://archive.org/details/TheFranklinCover-upByFormerGreenBeretJohnDecamp/mode/1up