Judge orders ICE to improve conditions at NYC immigration facility

A federal judge on Tuesday ordered federal immigration officials to immediately improve conditions at a New York City immigration holding facility, following complaints by detained migrants of filthy, overcrowded rooms and a lack of basic hygiene products.

U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan issued a temporary restraining order requiring U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement(ICE) to reduce capacity, improve cleanliness and provide sleeping mats in holding rooms inside 26 Federal Plaza, a government building in Lower Manhattan.

The order comes after a lawsuit filed on behalf of detained migrants claimed they were subjected to unsanitary and overcrowded conditions, extreme temperatures, and a lack of access to soap, toothbrushes, and other essentials, according to The Associated Press.

The migrants said they were fed inedible “slop” and were subjected to the stench of sweat, urine and feces, in part due to the rooms having open toilets.

One woman said that during her period, she couldn’t access menstrual products because only two were made available to an entire room of women, court filings revealed.

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At a hearing Tuesday, the plaintiffs’ attorney, Heather Gregorio, described the facility as having “inhumane and horrifying conditions.”

DOJ attorney Jeffrey Oestericher acknowledged that detainees were receiving only two meals per day and were not provided medication or sleeping mats. However, he pushed back on the overcrowding claims, according to reports by The Hill.

“Present conditions are relevant,” Oestericher told the judge at the hearing. “To the extent they are talking about overcrowding, it does not appear presently that there is overcrowding.”

“I think we all agree that conditions at 26 Federal Plaza need to be humane, and we obviously share that belief,” he added. “I think there is some factual disagreement.”

In Tuesday’s order, Kaplan ordered immigration officials to provide 50 square feet per person. This means the largest hold room’s capacity will be brought down to about 15 people after detainees said there had been at least 40, according to The Associated Press.

The cells must also be thoroughly cleaned three times a day. Officials are additionally required to provide clean bedding mats and an adequate supply of soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste and other hygiene products.

The judge also ordered officials to ensure detainees have confidential telephone calls with lawyers, including interpreters for those who do not speak English. 

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But Judge Kaplan wasn’t convinced the situation wouldn’t deteriorate again.

“My conclusion here is that there is a very serious threat of continuing irreparable injury, given the conditions that I’ve been told about,” the judge said at the hearing on Tuesday. “I have no enforceable way of assuring that any progress that, in fact, has been made won’t backslide very quickly.”

The lawsuit was brought by the immigrant rights organization Make the Road New York, as well as the American Civil Liberties Union and the New York Civil Liberties Union.

“Today’s order sends a clear message: ICE cannot hold people in abusive conditions and deny them their Constitutional rights to due process and legal representation,” ACLU senior staff attorney Eunice Cho said in a statement.

“We’ll continue to fight to ensure that peoples’ rights are upheld at 26 Federal Plaza and beyond,” the statement continued.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.