WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, joined U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and 20 other Senate Democrats in sounding the alarm on the dramatic increase in deaths in Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE detention, with over 30 deaths since the start of the Trump Administration. In a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and ICE senior official Todd Lyons, the Senators condemned the deaths of six people in ICE custody so far this year, after seven people died last December alone.
The letter comes after Padilla and Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) conducted an oversight visit last month to the largest detention center in California, located in California City, to learn firsthand of the concerns surrounding the inhumane conditions detained individuals are facing at the private, for-profit facility. The Senators investigated reports of unsanitary and unsafe facility conditions, inadequate medical and mental health care, insufficient access to legal counsel, a severe lack of accommodations for people with disabilities, and the unnecessary use of solitary confinement. Last week, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction ordering ICE to provide adequate health care and access to counsel to people detained at the facility.
“This rapidly increasing number of deaths is a clear byproduct of the Trump Administration’s dangerous and poorly executed mass deportation agenda—one focused on detaining as many immigrants as possible, not just the ‘worst of the worst,’ for extended periods of time. We urge you to use the unprecedented resources at your disposal to reinvigorate your agency’s detention oversight efforts, investigate these deaths, and provide those in your custody with adequate medical care,” wrote the Senators.
“Though deaths in detention have occurred under every Administration, under your leadership, individuals are dying in shocking numbers. Rather than accepting responsibility for deaths in government custody and providing detailed facts about the circumstances of each death, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has attempted to smear deceased individuals’ reputations by emphasizing details about their immigration status and their alleged wrongdoing in the United States,” continued the Senators.
The Senators cited harrowing incidents of death in detention, including guards choking a man to death, an apparent suicide, and others. They highlighted that ICE has used its unprecedented funding surge from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act to significantly expand its detention capacity. They are now holding over 67,000 people across the country after hitting a historic high of approximately 73,000 — many of whom have no criminal history. Recently, the Administration partnered with private companies to drastically scale up its detention capacity, including at industrial facilities where they want to cram up to 8,000 individuals — double the capacity of the largest federal prison. One such facility near Phoenix is seven times the size of a football field and costs $70 million. ICE is also reopening centers that were previously shuttered due to chronic staffing shortages and medical issues.
The Senators cited repeated false claims by the Administration that ICE provides adequate detention conditions and medical care. They pointed to the agency’s failure to pay third-party medical providers for months, continued contracting with medical service providers known for substandard care, and internal audits documenting violations of detention standards. They also referenced deaths of individuals with treatable diseases, interference by immigration agents in medical treatment, and an analysis of 911 calls demonstrating the system is overwhelmed by unmet medical needs and urgent care requests.
“At a time when record numbers of people are dying in ICE custody, it is unacceptable that the agency continues to restrict congressional oversight of detention facilities, including by unlawfully requiring Members of Congress to alert ICE seven days prior to detention visits, a policy recently blocked by a federal court, and failing to provide mandated reporting with details about the deaths,” concluded the Senators. “Each death in ICE custody is a tragedy and, based on the evidence available from agency records, 911 calls, and medical experts, many could have been prevented if not for this Administration’s decisions.”
Details: Find the full text of the letter here