U.S. will close one immigrant detention center, scale back operations at three others

An immigrant detention center in Alabama will be closed and operations will be curtailed at three centers in other states, federal officials announced on March 25.

In a news release, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said that detention centers are subject to review by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. That review requires Mayorkas to decide if detention centers have humane conditions, meet certain standards, and “represent a responsible use of appropriated funding,” the agency said in a news release.

The Etowah County Detention Center in Gadsden, Alabama, will be closed “as soon as possible” due to its “long history of serious deficiencies,” the news release said, adding that the facility has less operational significance to the agency than others.

The other three centers — in Florida, North Carolina and Louisiana — will have more limited operations going forward, the release said.

Operations at the Glades County Detention Center in Moore Haven, Florida, will be cut back because of long-standing concerns about detainees’ medical care, the release said. ICE said that any further use of the center will depend on whether conditions improve.

The Alamance County Detention Facility in Graham, North Carolina, will now only be used for short-term detentions of 72 hours or less. The facility has previously been used as a long-term detention center, but officials expressed concern about its conditions, including “a lack of outdoor recreation,” the release said.

The Winn Correctional Center in Winnfield, Louisiana will have fewer beds going forward and will hire a resource coordinator to work with detainees, the release said.

ICE plans to transfer migrants to other facilities, based on whether their continued detention is deemed necessary.

Immigration advocates have raised the alarm over conditions in detention centers for years. That criticism only grew during the COVID-19 pandemic, when advocates were concerned over the lack of COVID-19 protocol in detention centers and the possibility of its spread within them.

On Feb. 1, a group of 17 lawmakers presented Mayorkas with a letter saying, that the Glades Detention Center should be shut down, citing racist abuse against Black detainees, a carbon monoxide leak that left four detainees hospitalized, the overuse of toxic chemicals, and other concerns.

The American Civil Liberties Union said the news of the Alabama center closing was “welcome,” but criticized ICE for continuing to operate the other centers.

“These detention centers also have unacceptable records, including unsanitary conditions, medical neglect, and retaliation against detained people for raising concerns about conditions,” the ACLU said in a statement. “Ultimately, the Biden administration must do much more than close and scale back a select few facilities, especially as it continues to greatly expand detention elsewhere.

As of March 13, there were over 20,000 immigrants in ICE custody in the U.S. Texas has the highest number of detainees, with nearly 6,000 people in the state’s detention centers, according to data from the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University.

This story was originally published March 25, 2022 at 3:03 PM with the headline "U.S. will close one immigrant detention center, scale back operations at three others."