New Mexico Congresswoman calls for transparency on ICE detention facility

New Mexico Congresswoman Melanie Stansbury is calling on the Department of Homeland Security secretary to explain what is being done to address long-term concerns at the Torrance County Detention Facility.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s contracts with the Torrance County Detention Facility to house men waiting for immigration hearings. The facility is run by Core Civic.

Stansbury, along with Rep.Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., sent a letter asking for increased transparency from DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Fifty of their colleagues in Congress have also signed, including Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández, D-N.M.

In 2022, a draft ICE memo recommended closing or downsizing nine immigration detention centers, including the Torrance County Detention Facility in Estancia, according to reporting from Reuters. ICE has ended contracts with or has begun phasing out three of the nine detention centers on the drafted memo, the letter from Congressional members says.

The final version of the memo dropped the recommendation to close the Torrance County facility, Reuters reported.

In 2022, the Office of the Inspector General issued a management recommendation that all detainees be removed from the Torrance facility until staffing shortages and unsanitary living conditions could be addressed. The American Civil Liberties Union also filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the detention facility in November on behalf of Kesley Vial, a Brazilian man who died by suicide in the facility in 2022.

Stansbury and her fellow representatives are asking DHS to provide a copy of the finalized memo, an explanation for what action was taken for each of the facilities, information on why the Torrance County Detention Facility was removed from the list and what DHS is doing to address the 2022 OIG report on the facility. They are also asking for information on any plans to close or downsize ICE detention facilities mentioned in the 2022 memo.

“There is a private for-profit county jail that is operating as part of a county contract for detaining individuals who are picked up by police,” Stansbury said. “That has nothing to do with immigration. But the primary contract that that private prison operates under is an ICE contract to provide bedding to asylum seekers that are picked up at the El Paso border crossing.

“So what we have is on any given month, hundreds of individuals who are being transported from El Paso to Torrance County, and literally put in jail cells right next to individuals who have also been picked up for actual crimes here in the state of New Mexico. This is an absolutely inappropriate use of public dollars. That particular facility costs the taxpayers $2 million a month to provide beds for individuals seeking asylum.”

Both groups are detained in the facility, according to Core Civic spokesperson Brian Todd, but are kept in different areas. Todd said the safety, health and well-being of the people in the company's care and the staff is its top priority in a statement from Core Civic.

"We continue to hear claims and allegations about the Torrance County Detention Facility (TCDF) that simply don't reflect the quality of the services provided at the facility or the professionalism of our team. The reality is that we provide a safe, humane and appropriate environment for the individuals at TCDF and are constantly striving to deliver an even better standard of care," the statement said.

Todd also pointed out that TCDF received superior ratings in its annual fiscal year 2022 and fiscal year 2023 audits from the ICE Office of Detention and Oversight. The statement also noted that local and federal elected officials have made unannounced visits to the facility and echoed the audits.

"We're proud of our dedicated team at TCDF who work hard every day to keep those in our care safe while providing for their needs as they progress through the civil immigration process. Our staff are trained and held to the highest ethical standards as part of our commitment to our Human Rights Policy," the statement read.

In December, Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., sent a letter to Mayorkas asking for an end to Core Civic’s contract and for closure of the Torrance County facility.

“I am growing exceedingly frustrated that my concerns have not been addressed, and today, I received a report from legal service advocates about a November 14, 2023, flood of raw sewage containing visible human excrement in two housing units, covering half of the unit’s cells and a significant portion of the unit’s common area,” the letter read.

According to Todd, there were two plumbing incidents at the detention facility on that date and one involved a flush valve that was quickly repaired. The other involved backup with a toilet "where detainees had flushed shirts and rages, which were retrieved by the maintenance officer." There was no raw sewage in either incident, Todd said, no medical issues resulted from the plumbing incidents and scheduled services were not disrupted.

Homeland Security Investigations spokeswoman Nina Pruneda said that ICE responds to Congressional correspondence "through official channels and by appropriate officials at the agency."