ACLU accuses Leavenworth facility of breaking the law, violating ICE detainees' rights
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is claiming that a federal prison in Leavenworth, Kansas, is breaking the law and violating the rights of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees.
Lawrence police searching for person accused of stabbing elderly woman
The ACLU said immigrants being detained at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) in Leavenworth are currently facing a number of problematic and unlawful conditions, including:
Lengthy lockdowns
Deprivation of basic needs
Crowded and unsanitary conditions
Use of force
Delays in medical care
Lack of language access
Lack of telephone access and confidential communications with legal counsel
Issues with legal mail
Lack of services
According to both detainee and attorney reports, the ACLU said a significant number of people detained at FCI Leavenworth continue to be held in ICE's custody even though they have already won their immigration cases.
from immigration advocates urged officials to rectify concerns regarding conditions in the facility and the prolonged detention of immigrant detainees.
The letter was written by Advocates for Immigrants Rights and Reconciliation, the ACLU, the ACLU of Kansas, the National Immigrant Justice Center, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), the Missouri/Kansas Chapter of AILA and the Office of Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation of the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth.
You can read the full letter here.
ICE entered into an agreement with the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) in February to house immigrant detainees. The ACLU said people in ICE custody face more restrictive conditions than those in BOP custody, with less out-of-cell time and no access to outdoor recreation. Language barriers also create significant hurdles for detainees in need of medical care, the ACLU said.
Michael Sharma-Crawford, a local immigration attorney and the current chair of the Kansas and Missouri chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, said it's a violation of the Sixth Amendment to deny detainees access to a lawyer.
'Detaining someone and undermining their due process by blocking access to counsel is a clear and unequivocal violation of the Sixth Amendment,' Sharma-Crawford said.
'That injustice becomes even more severe when it targets civil detainees—people who are not accused of any crime. The harm in these cases is not just amplified; it is indefensible.'
Eunice Cho, senior staff attorney at the ACLU's National Prison Project, said FCI Leavenworth is breaking the law.
'The Trump administration's use of federal prisons to detain immigrants must end. Holding people in extended lockdown, and denying them access to adequate medical care, legal counsel, and even sunlight isn't just inhumane – it's illegal,' Cho said.
'The taxpayer-funded conditions faced by immigrants held at FCI Leavenworth should concern us all.'
Karla Juarez, executive director of Advocates for Immigrant Rights and Reconciliation, said she's horrified by what's going on at the facility.
'What's happening at FCI Leavenworth is not only a violation of ICE's own policies—it's a violation of our shared humanity,' Juarez said. 'These are people who have already won their immigration cases and who should be free with their families, not locked in overcrowded cells without access to medical care or even sunlight.
'We are horrified. We demand that ICE and BOP stop treating immigrant lives as disposable and immediately release those who have already been granted protection.'
An individual who was detained at FCI Leavenworth earlier this year shared his experience with the ACLU.
'The hardest thing I can express was that when we arrived, we were the second group, and it was an abandoned area,' the former detainee shared. 'Everything was very dirty. We didn't have any cleaning supplies. Food was the hardest part because it wasn't a pleasant meal. There was no way to wash clothes. We only had one uniform, and that was it. Honestly, the time we were locked up in the cell was the worst. We had no communication with our families, and they didn't comply with the necessary resources.'
He said he hopes ICE makes the necessary changes.
'I hope they get out as soon as possible,' he continued. 'There are many people who are there who have already won a case and are still there. I hope ICE pays more attention to their cases because they never get answers for them. I hope they are truly giving them enough food and they can communicate with their families and lawyers.'
Earlier this month, the Kansas Federal Public Defender's office sent a letter to the FCI Leavenworth warden and the assistant general counsel at the BOP due to health concerns for residents – prompted by a monthslong rat infestation at the FCI facility.
The letter also noted issues with video visitation of connectivity and timeliness interfering with reliable and confidential visitation for attorneys with clients. A responsive letter from the warden noted pest control measures taken and stated that attorney-client visits are unmonitored and confidential.
The FCI Leavenworth facility is run by the BOP. This is not the CoreCivic facility that the city has been battling in court.
FOX4 has been in contact with FCI Leavenworth and is awaiting their response. Check back in for the latest updates on this story.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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