Texas Congressmen Ask For Immigrant Detention Center Probe

WILLIAMSON COUNTY, TX — A pair of U.S. Congressmen from Texas are calling for an "expedited audit" of a Williamson County immigrant detention center after a detainee's outcry of alleged sexual assault at the hands of a guard.

U.S. Reps. Joaquín Castro and Lloyd Doggett, Democrats from San Antonio and Austin, respectively, have written to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Department of Homeland Security officials requesting them to "...direct an investigation of ICE’s handling of sexual assault cases in Texas immigration detention facilities.”

The action comes amid claims by an El Salvador immigrant of being sexually assaulted at the Taylor, Texas, facility by a guard. Laura Monterrosa, 23, claims she has been sexually assaulted and retaliated against by detention center officials after her outcry. The El Salvador immigrant has been detained at the center since May 2017 after an unsuccessful attempt to secure asylum in the U.S.

Yet it's not the first time such allegations have surfaced. According to the congressmen's letter, five detainees have reported sexual assault at the T. Don Hutto Residential Center in Taylor from 2007-11. The letter was co-signed by more than 45 other members of Congress.

Austin-based Grassroots Leadership, an group advocating for immigrants, has long called attention to conditions at the Taylor detention center. More recently, they have risen awareness of the plight of Monterrosa, whose health has declined since being forced into solitary confinement after making her outcry that has prompted her to attempt suicide, advocates have reported.

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Despite critics' of a lucrative arrangement between the sites's operator, CoreCivic, and the county — which is paid some $8,000 monthly for allowing the facility to operate in the county — Williamson County commissioners have been silent on the matter of alleged abuse while renewing the contract each year. Williamson County Robert Chody also has been criticized for not looking into the matter, recently telling media outlets the FBI has taken over the investigation into the allegations.

“Complaints of sexual abuse by guards and subsequent retaliation by ICE following victim grievances are disturbing and unacceptable,” Doggett said. “Many of these victims are refugees seeking asylum, fleeing prior traumatic experiences. Basic human decency requires that they not be abused here. Our questions are designed to ensure some accountability for these disturbing allegations of sexual and physical abuse. ICE should respect and protect immigrants’ human rights.”

Castro echoed the sentiments, calling on ICE to launch an immediate investigation into the claims of abuse at the facility.

“Allegations of sexual harassment at ICE and the ways in which the agency refuses to deal with it are deeply disturbing. Sexual harassment, assault, and abuse of any magnitude is unacceptable, especially for vulnerable immigrants who, oftentimes, are already fleeing traumatic circumstances,” Castro said. “That’s why it is imperative to investigate the handling of these complaints and audit ICE’s compliance with the law. ICE has a duty to care for all individuals in their charge, and lawmakers must hold them accountable to carrying out this mission.”

Among the letter's co-signers are: Zoe Lofgren, Michelle Lujan Grisham, Raul Grijalva, Luis Gutiérrez, Filemon Vela Jr., Vicente González, Juan Vargas, Al Green, Sheila Jackson Lee, Jan Schakowsky, Gene Green, Salud Carbajal, Nanette Barragán, Mike Quigley, Barbara Lee, Jerrold Nadler, Adriano Espaillat, Ann McLane Kuster, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Pramila Jayapal, Norma Torres, Jared Polis, Darren Soto, Donald McEachin, Ruben Gallego, Grace Napolitano, Lucille Roybal-Allard, José E. Serrano, Dina Titus, André Carson, Antonio Cárdenas, Elijah Cummings, Adam Smith, James McGovern, Beto O’Rourke, Jimmy Gomez, Ro Khanna, Albio Sires, Judy Chu, Grace Meng, Nydia M. Velázquez, Frank Pallone Jr., Ben Ray Luján, and Jose Luis Correa.This request for act

Aside from Grassroots Leadership several groups have endorsed the congressman's calls for a probe, among them: ACLU, Human Rights Watch, United We Dream, Community Initiatives for Visiting Immigrants in Confinement (CIVIC), Detention Watch Network, RAICES, National Immigrant Justice Center, Immigrant Legal Resource Center, National Center for Transgender Equality, and Pangea Legal Services, Immigration Equality Action Fund, Mexican American Legislative Caucus (Texas State Legislature), and the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault.

Bob Libal, executive director of Grassroots Leadership, called for justice to Monterrosa and others allegedly victimized in similar fashion: "In this time of national reckoning with sexual assault and harassment, we must ensure that justice is served to those like Laura Monterrosa, who has courageously spoken out about sexual abuse inside the for-profit T. Don Hutto detention center in Taylor, Texas. No one should be subject to the appalling treatment that Laura has experienced while detained for nine months. We applaud these Congressional representatives for taking leadership on this issue. ICE must act swiftly to address the series issues raised in this letter, and should release Ms. Monterrosa immediately while the federal criminal investigation into her assault continues."

Added Mary Small, Police Director for Detention Watch Network: “The track record of abuse in detention is long-standing, well documented and overwhelming. It is unacceptable that ICE has continued to evade accountability for sexual abuse in detention. This attempt to silence a survivor betrays fundamental values, and signals a worrying indifference to this problem inside of the agency. We welcome this intervention by Members of Congress and encourage all signatories to continue to pursue these recommendations and justice for those who have suffered abuse.”

National Immigrant Justice Center Associate Director of Policy Diane Eikenberry said the allegations emanating from the T. Don Hutto site is emblematic of a long-term pattern of abuse at corporate-run immigrant detention faciliies: “For too long, ICE has been permitted to evade accountability, despite ample documentation of its inability to ensure the safety and health of the tens of thousands of immigrants in its custody,” said . “These extremely concerning allegations of sexual abuse throughout ICE’s detention system stem from a culture of secrecy and imp unity that values corporate profits over the well-being, safety and dignity of people and their communities.”

Jasmine L. Tyler, advocacy director for the US Program of Human Rights Watch, noted the issue of abuse at immigrant detention centers is an extension of similar abuse at prisons that are the focus of their own inquiries: “Human Rights Watch has investigated sexual abuse in prisons, leading to the passage of the Prison Rape Elimination Act, and we have released several reports documenting dangerous and rights-violating conditions in immigration detention,” Tyler said. “HRW believes it is critical for ICE to implement safeguards for detainees in their care to prevent sexual abuse in immigration detention.”

Christina Fialho, an attorney and the co-founder/executive director of Community Initiatives for Visiting Immigrants in Confinement (CIVIC), agreed: "Ms. Monterrosa's case is not an outlier," she said " For example, people who speak out often face retaliation in the form of solitary confinement, physical and psychological violence, transfers far away from family and legal support, and even deportation. By not properly investigating each allegation of sexual assault, our government sends a clear message that it not only tolerates the sexual abuse of immigrants, but it also maintains an environment for it to thrive with impunity."

National Center for Transgender Equality Executive Director Mara Keisling added that members of the LGBTQ community are often targets of sexual assault at such facilities: “Many LGBTQ immigrants in detention came to this country seeking safety from life threatening prosecution only to be indefinitely detained and revictimized by ICE. ICE's PREA efforts have so far failed to produce meaningful change and real accountability to ensure no one is abused in ICE custody. We will continue to call for real accountability for what goes on in ICE detention centers and an end to the detention of vulnerable immigrants.”

To read the full letter by the congressman, click here.

Related materials provided by the congressmen:

[1] https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2014-03-07/pdf/2014-04675.pdf

[2] https://www.ice.gov/prea
[3]https://grijalva.house.gov/uploads/2017_12_18_DHS_Nielsen_Sexual%20Assault%20in%20ICE%20facilities5.pdf
[4] http://www.endisolation.org/sexual-assault
[5]https://public.tableau.com/profile/jonathan2937#!/vizhome/shared/MSXK2ZQQS
[6]https://www.oig.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/assets/2017-12/OIG-18-32-Dec17.pdf
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