A group of Democratic congressmembers visited the Adelanto Detention Facility Tuesday and are urging federal immigration officials to be more transparent about conditions inside the center. The lawmakers spoke to several people who were arrested in recent immigration raids across Southern California and are now detained at the facility.
On June 8, ICE denied Congresswoman Judy Chu entry to Adelanto, despite a federal law that allows unannounced visits by members of Congress. But on Tuesday, Chu and fellow Reps. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, Luz Rivas and Mark Takano were granted access for a tour.
Chu’s office says the detention center is now holding around 1,100 people, up from about 300 people a month ago. The increase follows a recent legal settlement allowing the private prison operator contracting with ICE — GEO Group — to hold more people at the site.
Chu said some detainees told her they went without clean clothes for over a week and had no way to contact attorneys or family members because they hadn’t been issued phone PINs required to make calls from inside.
“They are very upset, anxious and fearful,” said Chu. “They don't know what the future holds for them, and in the meanwhile, the conditions that they're facing in there are not good.”
Chu also criticized ICE for withholding information about detainees and whether those arrested locally would be transferred elsewhere.
“We were definitely given the runaround,” she said. “They weren't hostile, but they were clearly not going to answer.”
ICE did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday. GEO Group CEO George Zoley said last week that Adelanto “plays an important role in helping ICE fulfill their mission.”
Families concerned over treatment of loved ones in Adelanto
Immigration lawyers and advocates were also on hand to speak about ICE’s actions and the conditions inside Adelanto. Eva Bitran, an attorney with the ACLU of Southern California, says things remain chaotic inside the facility.
“In the sense that they have now processed upwards of 800 people in a week, maybe 10 days,” she said. “We also understand that there are people from all over the country being held here.”
Lucero Garcia says her uncle was arrested last Monday by federal immigration officials in Orange County. She didn’t share his name due to concerns for his safety, but says he described troubling conditions inside Adelanto.
“He says that sometimes there's not enough food for them to eat. There's a lot of inmates, and he's just really overwhelmed.”
She also worries about his health.
“He is diabetic, so I saw him losing a significant amount of weight, probably ten pounds. He looks deteriorated,” said Garcia.
Carlos Anastacio shared that his father, Tomas, was detained during the raid at the Ambiance Apparel wholesale warehouse in Los Angeles.
“When I first received a [text] message from him, he told me that ICE was at his workplace,” said Anastacio. “It was the last time I had heard from my father, and I wouldn't hear from him til days later.”
Anastacio eventually heard from his father five days later, but says the experience has been painful, not just for his family, but for many others impacted by the same raid.
“People who I directly know, who are heads of households who leave behind very young children,” he said “It's been just really hard to see how all these families essentially have to support each other in order to make up for the fact that they don't have their fathers at home.”
