A new report by Disability Rights California (DRC) has raised serious concerns about the treatment of people with disabilities detained at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center in San Bernardino County, California.
Following a monitoring visit on June 25, DRC concluded that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and private contractor GEO Group are subjecting disabled detainees to abuse and neglect amid a surge in population at the facility.
Findings from the report revealed that nearly 1,400 individuals were being held at Adelanto at the time of their visit, up from approximately 300 just weeks earlier. The watchdog found widespread issues including denial of life-saving medications, poor access to mental health services, inadequate food and drinking water, and unhygienic conditions.
"We are being treated like dogs in cages," detainees shouted during the visit, according to the report.
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One detainee with diabetes said he received his required medication only twice in ten days. Another showed DRC a swollen, untreated wrist injury sustained 17 days earlier. A third individual described severe anxiety and past trauma but reported no mental health evaluation after over three weeks in detention.
DRC interviewed another individual using a prosthetic eye who was unable to clean the prosthesis to prevent infection. Several individuals informed DRC that they did not understand how to make requests for medical care or declined to do so because Adelanto staff failed to respond.
One of the most glaring findings was the lack of accommodations for disabilities, including individuals with spinal issues not receiving adequate mattresses and a detainee with a broken hearing aid unable to get it repaired.
Other individuals reported insufficient access to medication to manage severe asthma and urinary conditions or not having medications transferred from previous facilities to ensure continued treatment
Basic needs were also reportedly unmet. DRC documented delays in meal service, insufficient food portions, and limited drinking water. Multiple detainees reported not receiving clean clothes for up to 20 days, forcing them to wear soiled garments or wash clothes in sinks.
The Adelanto ICE Processing Center was also the focus of a June 20 Los Angeles Times investigation, which cited interviews with staff, attorneys, and members of Congress. Representative Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park), who toured the facility, said detainees reported being held for 10 days without a change of clothes or the ability to contact lawyers or family.
"What about their legal rights? What about the ability to be in contact with their families? That is inhumane," Chu stated at the time.
In a statement cited in the LA Times piece, GEO Group Executive Chairman George C. Zoley stated that the was "proud of our approximately 350 employees at the Adelanto Center, whose dedication and professionalism have allowed GEO to establish a long-standing record of providing high-quality support services on behalf of ICE in the state of California."
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