A federal judge has ordered immigration authorities to stop transferring people in and out of a detention center in Farmville, Virginia that has become a hotspot for the coronavirus.
The National Immigration Project and Legal Aid Justice Center filed a lawsuit late last month on behalf of detainees at the facility against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. They alleged that large numbers of detainees were transferred into crowded conditions before they were quarantined, leading to what the New York Times called the worst outbreak of coronavirus at any such facility in the U.S.
In early July, every single detainee was tested for COVID-19, and 93% of the detainees whose results were reported tested positive for the virus. This came days after guards allegedly used pepper spray on detainees who protested for better conditions and medical care. A 72-year-old detainee died in custody there last week after testing positive for the coronavirus.
“We’re pleased with the ruling — it’s a good start, but there’s a lot of work still to be done,” Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, Legal Director of the Immigrant Advocacy Program at the Legal Aid Justice Center, tells DCist/WAMU. “We’ve heard horror stories about medical negligence, people who are very, very sick and are only being treated with Tylenol.”
In a statement, ICE officials said the agency is “firmly committed to the health and welfare of all those in its custody,” and that it “has taken extensive precautions to limit the potential spread of COVID-19.”
On Monday, a team of scientists from the Centers for Disease Control arrived to work with officials at the Piedmont Health District, the local health department, to begin addressing the situation, the Washington Post reported. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam and both Virginia senators had repeatedly appealed to President Trump for assistance, as ICE facilities are under federal jurisdiction.
Leonie Brinkema, the U.S. district court judge who signed the order, asked for photographs of a “representative dorm area” as well as blueprint or other visuals showing the overall layout of the facility. The judge could also appoint an independent health expert to assess the situation.
“It’s a terrible shame that it took a death before ICE finally brought in the CDC,” Sandoval-Moshenberg says. “Now we have to make sure that ICE actually follows the CDC guidelines and recommendations this time.”
There is a conference call scheduled for August 17 to discuss the CDC inspection of the detention facility, the order says. Sandoval-Moshenberg says it is notable that lawyers for the plaintiffs and their independent council will be able to sit in and listen to the CDC’s findings and recommendations.
“Then we’ll ask the judge to put them on an extremely short leash and set very tight deadlines with no wiggle room for [ICE] to comply,” he says.
Previously:
Man In ICE Custody Dies After Being Held In Farmville Detention Center
More Than 70% Of People Detained At The Farmville Detention Center Are COVID-Positive
After Transfers From Coronavirus Hotspots, Cases Spike At Farmville ICE Detention Facility
