A federal judge ruled last week that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) can resume detaining immigrants at its facility in the high desert, one of the largest in California.
U.S. District Judge Terry Hatter Jr.'s decision lifts a COVID-era ban on receiving immigrants at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center.
Hatter’s ruling is unrelated to former President Trump’s immigration plans. In 2020, he ordered ICE to release detainees after finding the agency failed to properly address the outbreak.
Until a final “fairness hearing” in March to close out the settlement, the facility can increase its detainee cap to 475. The facility’s full bed capacity is 1,490, as listed on facility operator GEO Group’s website.
Eva Bitrán, the immigrant rights director for the ACLU of Southern California, says that the intake ban was never a permanent solution for closing Adelanto. She confirmed the ACLU continues to push for its shutdown due to unsafe conditions.
“We know that this intake ban was never going to be the silver bullet that closed Adelanto,” said Bitrán. “While this decision permits new people to be taken to the facility, we strongly believe they should not be, and in fact, that this facility should close.”
Congresswoman Judy Chu says she was disappointed by Hatter’s decision and doesn’t trust GEO Group to upkeep conditions at Adelanto.
“As a private company, GEO is primarily looking at its profit margin,” she said. “They're going to cut corners where they can in terms of food, in terms of sanitation, but especially in terms of medical care.”
Neither ICE nor the GEO Group responded to KVCR’s requests for comment in time for broadcast and publication. In October, ICE stated its intent to extend its task order to keep the private detention facility open for potential future use.
“The ability for the agency to remove individuals to their home countries, hold those in custody who require detention and are a public safety threat is directly dependent on location and availability of detention space,” reads their statement.
The Adelanto ICE Processing Center has faced scrutiny for its conditions, including allegations of medical neglect and poor mental health care. A 2019 report highlighted concerns about substandard medical and mental health treatment of detainees at the facility.
Since taking office, Trump has issued executive orders to expand immigration detention, including securing space in California for new facilities and authorizing the use of Guantanamo Bay for detainees.
