Flouting state laws, CoreCivic will endanger hundreds at the unpermitted and unsafe California City Correctional Facility
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: media@freedomforimmigrants.org
CALIFORNIA CITY, Calif. — Mega prison corporation CoreCivic is detaining people in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the U.S. Marshals Service at the California City Correctional Facility despite its failure to comply with California law and obtain the required city permits. City officials previously alerted CoreCivic that the city found serious safety concerns at the prison, including a failed fire department inspection, and that the facility could not legally operate in the city.
CoreCivic appears to be operating the facility without the required city business license and conditional use permit, and in violation of a state law, Senate Bill 29. Freedom for Immigrants helped draft and co-sponsored the law, enacted in 2018, which prohibits local governments from issuing building permits for privately-run federal immigration detention centers without first providing 180 days public notice and holding at least two public hearings. The bill also curbs the growth of for-profit immigrant detention centers in the state by prohibiting cities and counties from entering into new, or modifying existing, contracts with private prison companies with the purpose of expanding immigration detention.
Amanda Díaz, organizing director with Freedom for Immigrants (FFI), issued the following statement, demanding action from California City and state officials:
“CoreCivic’s operation of the California City Correctional Center is a direct threat to human rights, public safety, and the values we hold as Californians. Immigration detention — whether privately or publicly run — undermines our ideals of justice, fairness, and freedom. Our people deserve better. Our families and loved ones deserve to fight for their cases outside of immigration detention in their homes and communities.
“CoreCivic must not be allowed to continue operating outside legal and ethical boundaries. We demand transparency, the enforcement of city and state laws, and the immediate closure of the California City Correctional Facility. CoreCivic is subject to California laws and city laws, just as any other entity. California City’s power to enforce its municipal code does not disappear because of who CoreCivic is contracting with. If CoreCivic isn’t complying with these basic permitting laws, what violations are they committing inside the prison?
“Unfortunately, we already know CoreCivic’s appalling and well-documented history of systemic neglect and abuse means our community members inside are in danger of unimaginable human rights violations and preventable deaths. Unless immediate action is taken to close the facility, California City will soon become synonymous with CoreCivic’s shameful record of horrifying medical neglect, poor working conditions, understaffing, forced labor, and preventable deaths. A few days ago, we received a call to FFI’s National Immigration Detention Hotline from a person detained in California City who reported submitting a medical request over a week ago and not receiving a response. The caller also reported that they are not allowed outside. In the last month alone, our hotline received over 90 calls from individuals detained at the Otay Mesa Detention Center, a facility owned by CoreCivic. These individuals reported rampant medical neglect, expired food, or not enough food, an individual not receiving the psychiatric medication they needed, and even a call from a man detained in Otay Mesa who has cancer and is not receiving treatment.
“Does California City want to bear responsibility for this type of mistreatment of its own people? We demand city and state officials take swift action — for its people, for human dignity — and stand on the right side of history. California City can continue down a path of incarceration, and the pain, trauma, fear, and division that come with it, or the city can fight to create a liveable and just economy for everyone. This detention center will not bring sustainable, long-term prosperity. Past examples, like in nearby McFarland, have shown that long-term economic growth promised by private prison companies does not materialize. These major corporations do not care about the well-being of our communities — they are only interested in increasing their own bottom lines. We cannot turn our back on our people by tying our economy to a vile system that thrives on the suffering of immigrant communities.”
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Freedom for Immigrants is an abolitionist organization working to end immigration incarceration by organizing with and following the leadership of currently and formerly incarcerated immigrants. We’re building a future in which all people can move freely and thrive. Learn more at www.freedomforimmigrants.org/.