A new report by the inspector general of the Homeland Security Department found persistent abuses at immigration detention facilities that the department has done little to address. (Photo: Customs and Border Protection)
'Crimes Against Humanity': Abuses Persist at Immigrant Detention Centers as DHS Hands Out 'Waivers' to Contractors
Contractors have been granted waivers to use tear gas on detainees and after failing to report a sexual assault, an inspector general's report found
In another sign the Trump administration is violating the rights of immigrants, a poorly regulated system of handing out "waivers" to contractors which run immigrant detention facilities has allowed many abuses at the facilities to persist for years, according to a damning new report by the inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The report found that federal immigration authorities are failing to police both private and public contractors which run detention facilities currently holding more than 45,000 immigrants each day. Instead of revoking contracts, fining the businesses and public entities which are operating the centers, or taking other actions to ensure abuses don't continue once they're discovered, DHS is simply granting waivers to the contractors for violations including failure to report sexual assaults in their facilities.
"ICE may be indefinitely allowing contract facilities to circumvent detention standards intended to assure the safety, security, and rights of detainees." --Office of the Inspector General, DHSThe report highlighted one contractor that was given a waiver allowing staffers to use tear gas on immigrants in their custody, while another was permitted to house immigrants with violent criminal histories near people who had not committed violent crimes--a practice that the federal government prohibits "to protect detainees who may be at risk of victimization or assault."
Under the waiver system, the report read, "ICE may be indefinitely allowing contract facilities to circumvent detention standards intended to assure the safety, security, and rights of detainees."
The inspector general examined conditions and abuses that had taken place at 106 detention facilities between October 2015 and June 2018, learning that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had issued only two fines to contractors for mismanagement--despite recording more than 14,000 "deficiencies" during that time.
The penalties amounted to only $3.9 million total--about .13 percent of the more than $3 billion ICE was paying contractors to run detention facilities during that period.
The inspector general's office also reviewed 68 waiver requests and 65 approved waivers. The office noted that only 62 of the approved requests had expiration dates, suggesting that those tasked with housing tens of thousands of immigrants had been given approval to operate below the federal government's standards indefinitely.
Despite the high approval rating, the inspector general wrote, ICE did not provide details during the probe into how or why waivers are approved.
In fact, "key officials admitted there are no policies, procedures, guidance documents, or instructions to explain how to review waiver requests," the report read.
ICE did provide the inspector general with forms that contractors could use to request waivers allowing them to conduct strip searches on immigrants in their care.
"However, the memoranda did not acknowledge the important constitutional and policy interests implicated by a facility's use of strip searches," the report read. "ICE officials did not explain how Custody Management should handle such waiver requests when a contrary contractual provision requires compliance with a strip search standard."
On social media, critics denounced the news of DHS's "waiver system" as more evidence that immigration officials have committed "crimes against humanity" at the U.S.-Mexico border, while others called on Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen to resign.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
In another sign the Trump administration is violating the rights of immigrants, a poorly regulated system of handing out "waivers" to contractors which run immigrant detention facilities has allowed many abuses at the facilities to persist for years, according to a damning new report by the inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The report found that federal immigration authorities are failing to police both private and public contractors which run detention facilities currently holding more than 45,000 immigrants each day. Instead of revoking contracts, fining the businesses and public entities which are operating the centers, or taking other actions to ensure abuses don't continue once they're discovered, DHS is simply granting waivers to the contractors for violations including failure to report sexual assaults in their facilities.
"ICE may be indefinitely allowing contract facilities to circumvent detention standards intended to assure the safety, security, and rights of detainees." --Office of the Inspector General, DHSThe report highlighted one contractor that was given a waiver allowing staffers to use tear gas on immigrants in their custody, while another was permitted to house immigrants with violent criminal histories near people who had not committed violent crimes--a practice that the federal government prohibits "to protect detainees who may be at risk of victimization or assault."
Under the waiver system, the report read, "ICE may be indefinitely allowing contract facilities to circumvent detention standards intended to assure the safety, security, and rights of detainees."
The inspector general examined conditions and abuses that had taken place at 106 detention facilities between October 2015 and June 2018, learning that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had issued only two fines to contractors for mismanagement--despite recording more than 14,000 "deficiencies" during that time.
The penalties amounted to only $3.9 million total--about .13 percent of the more than $3 billion ICE was paying contractors to run detention facilities during that period.
The inspector general's office also reviewed 68 waiver requests and 65 approved waivers. The office noted that only 62 of the approved requests had expiration dates, suggesting that those tasked with housing tens of thousands of immigrants had been given approval to operate below the federal government's standards indefinitely.
Despite the high approval rating, the inspector general wrote, ICE did not provide details during the probe into how or why waivers are approved.
In fact, "key officials admitted there are no policies, procedures, guidance documents, or instructions to explain how to review waiver requests," the report read.
ICE did provide the inspector general with forms that contractors could use to request waivers allowing them to conduct strip searches on immigrants in their care.
"However, the memoranda did not acknowledge the important constitutional and policy interests implicated by a facility's use of strip searches," the report read. "ICE officials did not explain how Custody Management should handle such waiver requests when a contrary contractual provision requires compliance with a strip search standard."
On social media, critics denounced the news of DHS's "waiver system" as more evidence that immigration officials have committed "crimes against humanity" at the U.S.-Mexico border, while others called on Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen to resign.
In another sign the Trump administration is violating the rights of immigrants, a poorly regulated system of handing out "waivers" to contractors which run immigrant detention facilities has allowed many abuses at the facilities to persist for years, according to a damning new report by the inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The report found that federal immigration authorities are failing to police both private and public contractors which run detention facilities currently holding more than 45,000 immigrants each day. Instead of revoking contracts, fining the businesses and public entities which are operating the centers, or taking other actions to ensure abuses don't continue once they're discovered, DHS is simply granting waivers to the contractors for violations including failure to report sexual assaults in their facilities.
"ICE may be indefinitely allowing contract facilities to circumvent detention standards intended to assure the safety, security, and rights of detainees." --Office of the Inspector General, DHSThe report highlighted one contractor that was given a waiver allowing staffers to use tear gas on immigrants in their custody, while another was permitted to house immigrants with violent criminal histories near people who had not committed violent crimes--a practice that the federal government prohibits "to protect detainees who may be at risk of victimization or assault."
Under the waiver system, the report read, "ICE may be indefinitely allowing contract facilities to circumvent detention standards intended to assure the safety, security, and rights of detainees."
The inspector general examined conditions and abuses that had taken place at 106 detention facilities between October 2015 and June 2018, learning that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had issued only two fines to contractors for mismanagement--despite recording more than 14,000 "deficiencies" during that time.
The penalties amounted to only $3.9 million total--about .13 percent of the more than $3 billion ICE was paying contractors to run detention facilities during that period.
The inspector general's office also reviewed 68 waiver requests and 65 approved waivers. The office noted that only 62 of the approved requests had expiration dates, suggesting that those tasked with housing tens of thousands of immigrants had been given approval to operate below the federal government's standards indefinitely.
Despite the high approval rating, the inspector general wrote, ICE did not provide details during the probe into how or why waivers are approved.
In fact, "key officials admitted there are no policies, procedures, guidance documents, or instructions to explain how to review waiver requests," the report read.
ICE did provide the inspector general with forms that contractors could use to request waivers allowing them to conduct strip searches on immigrants in their care.
"However, the memoranda did not acknowledge the important constitutional and policy interests implicated by a facility's use of strip searches," the report read. "ICE officials did not explain how Custody Management should handle such waiver requests when a contrary contractual provision requires compliance with a strip search standard."
On social media, critics denounced the news of DHS's "waiver system" as more evidence that immigration officials have committed "crimes against humanity" at the U.S.-Mexico border, while others called on Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen to resign.