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Miami Herald
21-07-2025
- Health
- Miami Herald
Report finds ‘dehumanizing' conditions in Florida immigration detention centers
Conditions in South Florida's immigration detention centers during the Trump administration's ongoing crackdown have been described as degrading and dehumanizing—violating international human-rights standards and the U.S. government's own detention guidelines—in a newly released report by three advocacy organizations. The 92-page report, ''You Feel Like Your Life is Over': Abusive Practices at Three Florida Immigration Detention Centers Since January 2025,' was released this week by Americans for Immigrant Justice, Human Rights Watch and Sanctuary of the South. It alleges widespread mistreatment of migrants detained at the Krome North Service Processing Center, Broward Transitional Center and the Federal Detention Center in Miami. The organizations—an immigrant-rights law firm, a global human-rights watchdog and a worker-led collective—reviewed documents and interviewed 17 current and former detainees, along with family members and attorneys. Detainees described extreme overcrowding, unsanitary conditions and abusive treatment by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers and private contractors. 'Some were shackled for prolonged periods on buses without food, water, or functioning toilets; there was extreme overcrowding in freezing holding cells where detainees were forced to sleep on cold concrete floors under constant fluorescent lighting,' the report states. 'Many were denied access to basic hygiene and medical care.' The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Bureau of Prisons did not respond to the Miami Herald's requests for comment. Emergencies were ignored Medical neglect was a central theme of the findings. Detainees with diabetes, HIV, asthma, kidney conditions and chronic pain reported being denied essential medications and doctor visits. Among the cases described in the report: ▪ A man with chronic illness said he collapsed after being transferred from the Federal Detention Center in downtown Miami to the Broward Transitional Center in Pompano Beach without his required daily medication. His family discovered he had been hospitalized under a false name. He was returned to detention in shackles. ▪ One man said he coughed up blood for hours in a crowded cell. When detainees protested, a Disturbance Control Team stormed in, zip-tied them and forced them to lie face down on a wet floor. One detainee reported seeing an officer instruct colleagues to turn off the CCTV camera. Another said an officer slapped him. ▪ A man detained at Krome described collapsing from a strangulated hernia after being denied care. 'The doctor told me if I had come in any later, my intestines would've ruptured,' he said. 'I had to throw myself on the floor just to get help.' He said he also witnessed officers hogtie and beat detainees who refused to board a transfer bus after a peaceful protest. ▪ Two men said they were denied HIV treatment while detained at Krome. One, previously held at the West Miami-Dade facility in 2020 and provided daily medication, was re-arrested in February. Despite the facility having his medical records, he waited 12 days before seeing a doctor. Similarly, another man had to wait over 13 days to receive his HIV medication, causing his previously undetectable viral load to become detectable. ▪ Another woman described witnessing the death of Marie Ange Blaise, a 44-year-old Haitian woman in the Broward Transitional Center. 'We started yelling for help, but the guards ignored us,' she said. 'By the time the rescue team arrived, she wasn't moving.' READ MORE: Florida congresswomen demand answers after Haitian woman dies in ICE custody Detainees said they were made to eat while handcuffed behind their backs, according to the report. They also described retaliation for seeking mental health support. At the Broward Transitional Center, they said, people who asked for help were placed in solitary confinement for weeks. Women held at Krome, a facility meant for men, reported being confined without bedding or privacy. One woman recalled arriving late at night on Jan. 28 and being held for days in a cell that was typically used for intake procedures and had just one toilet covered in feces. 'People in immigration detention are being treated as less than human,' Belkis Wille, the report's author and associate crisis and conflict director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. 'These are not isolated incidents, but the result of a fundamentally broken detention system that is rife with serious abuses.' Enforcement and Detention Immigration detention has surged nationwide since the beginning of Trump's second term, leading to overcrowding. In Florida, federal and state crackdowns have driven the detained population at Krome to nearly triple in three months. The Federal Detention Center, previously unused for immigration detention, began housing hundreds of immigrants earlier this year. The report emphasizes that the current administration has shown that 'any non-citizen, not just those with criminal convictions, are prone to apprehension and detention.' It highlights that the Department of Homeland Security exercises broad authority to detain and initiate removal proceedings against anyone out of lawful status. This includes people who entered the country without authorization, overstayed tourist or work visas, had student visas revoked or lost temporary protections such as humanitarian parole or Temporary Protected Status after they expired or were terminated. The report contrasts this approach with that of Trump's previous administration, which placed less emphasis on detaining and deporting non-citizens in these categories , instead focusing more narrowly on individuals with criminal records or those deemed national security threats. The expanded scope of enforcement — and the proliferation of 287(g) agreements linking local police and corrections and federal immigration enforcement — is contributing to a 'dramatic increase in arrests and detentions,' the report states. Within a month of Trump's second term, the number of people detained by ICE began to rise. Throughout 2024, an average of approximately 37,500 people were held in immigration detention each day. By June 20, that number had climbed to over 56,000 detainees on any given day—a 40 percent increase compared to June 2024, according to Human Rights Watch analysis of ICE data. Advocates have raised serious concerns about detainee safety and access to basic services amid extreme overcrowding in Florida's immigration detention facilities. At Krome, the number of detainees surged by 249 percent by March compared to pre-inauguration levels, with the facility at times holding more than three times its operational capacity, according to Human Rights Watch report. By June 20, the total number of immigration detainees across the three facilities in Florida remained 111 percent above levels seen before President Trump's return to office, underscoring the ongoing strain on the state's detention infrastructure under the administration's intensified immigration enforcement policies. Human Rights Watch says it sent letters on May 20 and June 11 to ICE, the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and the private companies managing Krome and Broward Transitional Center, detailing their findings and requesting responses. It says only the company operating Krome replied, saying it could not comment publicly. Echoes of previous reporting The findings in the report echo conditions independently documented by the Miami Herald in recent months. The Herald interviewed three former Krome detainees, along with attorneys and family members of three others held at the west Miami-Dade complex. They described a facility pushed to the brink, with detainees living in distress. READ MORE: 'Inhumane:' Overcrowding strains Krome detention center amid Trump's immigrant crackdown Although Krome and other ICE-run detention centers are bound by strict standards covering medical, mental health, hygiene, legal access, abuse prevention and language services, immigration attorneys told the Herald that conditions at Krome are 'the worst seen in 20 years' and have 'risen to the level of an international human rights disaster.' Another Herald investigation revealed last month that migrant detainees held at the Federal Detention Center in Miami are facing harsh and potentially rights-violating conditions. The facility, primarily designed for criminal defendants, is now also housing immigrants. According to legal documents and interviews with detainees, Bureau of Prisons staff and attorneys, the center is plagued by crumbling infrastructure, frequent use of force and severely limited access to legal counsel. While some detainees say the basic living conditions are slightly better than those in nearby ICE-run detention centers, access to legal support is significantly worse. Detainees report difficulty in communicating with attorneys, making legal phone calls or preparing for court. These findings raise concerns about due process, since immigration detention is civil in nature and not meant to be punitive. The government has expanded detention capacity to federal prisons. Under a February contract, ICE began placing detainees in five Federal Bureau of Prisons facilities. Legal documents and interviews reviewed by the Herald show these immigrants face harsh conditions, deteriorating infrastructure, and limited legal access—though in some cases, facilities are better maintained than traditional ICE centers. A Feb. 7 letter from Bureau of Prisons administrators classified immigrant detainees as 'pretrial inmates,' despite their civil—not criminal—status. Recommendations According to the advocacy organizations report, the abuses described violate ICE's own Performance-Based National Detention Standards and National Detention Standards, as well as international obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention Against Torture and the UN's Mandela Rules. The report urges the federal government to scale back detention and adopt community-based alternatives that provide legal, housing, and healthcare support—especially for asylum seekers, people with disabilities and others in compliance with immigration proceedings. It recommends that Congress repeal mandatory detention laws, reduce ICE funding and expand legal aid and oversight. DHS and ICE are called on to end the use of prisons, jails and private facilities for civil detention, improve medical care and increase transparency. For Florida officials, the report recommends ending 287(g) agreements with local law enforcement and rejecting new detention contracts. It also calls on United Nations bodies to investigate conditions in U.S. immigration detention and hold the government accountable for rights violations.
Politico
18-07-2025
- Politics
- Politico
‘Alligator Alcatraz' becomes lawsuit magnet
Good morning and happy Friday. The pile-on of lawsuits against the 'Alligator Alcatraz' detention center continued this week, on the heels of the facility's first congressional visit. The latest federal complaint brings on the ACLU and Americans for Immigrant Justice, and stems from detainees who've alleged it's been difficult for them to access their attorneys, especially for confidential conversations. Florida's emergency management division disputes the accusations, telling Playbook that 'detainees have access to phones and are free to contact their attorneys at any time.' Spokesperson STEPHANIE HARTMAN said they can request to see their lawyers, but the meeting has to be scheduled over email. The ACLU suit marked just the latest challenge the facility has faced since it opened earlier this month. The first, from the Center for Biological Diversity and Friends of the Everglades, came from environmental groups even before 'Alligator Alcatraz' opened, and asked a judge to quickly halt development, as POLITICO's Bruce Ritchie reported. The groups allege the facility is violating federal environmental laws and raised concerns about lights harming endangered species, such as the Florida panther, and brings attention to new pavement that was added to 11 acres near the airstrip. This week, the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians sought to intervene in the challenge, as Bruce reported, arguing the facility poses a pollution risk to nearby villages. The Florida Supreme Court sent another lawsuit from Democratic state lawmakers to the circuit court in Leon County. The lawmakers sued after they were denied entry to the facility on July 3. No hearings have been held or scheduled yet. And no lawsuits have been filed specifically against the dire conditions being alleged by detainees and former security guards in news reports. But those may not be far off. The case about lack of access to attorneys has been assigned to Judge RODOLFO RUIZ, a Trump appointee. And the environmental challenge was reassigned this week to KATHLEEN WILLIAMS — the same judge who held state Attorney General JAMES UTHMEIER in civil contempt of court over comments he made that appeared to violate her order to put an illegal immigration law on hold. Overall political action around the detention center also shows no signs of slowing down. Florida's House Democratic delegation introduced a bill Thursday to defund the 'inhumane' center from the Department of Homeland Security, even as it's unclear just how much of the estimated $450 million cost the federal government will pick up for the state. The bill would also have other facilities publicly report more details about their conditions and costs. Rep. DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ in a statement accused the president and Gov. RON DESANTIS of having 'exploited legal ambiguity' to avoid scrutiny. That same day, Attorney General PAM BONDI was at the original Alcatraz in San Francisco, as officials weigh reopening the facility to house federal offenders or undocumented immigrants who are facing deportation, reported Jennifer Yachnin of POLITICO's E+E News. DeSantis on Thursday defended 'Alligator Alcatraz' on Newsmax, saying it met and exceeded federal standards. 'I'm not running the Four Seasons,' he said, noting that undocumented immigrants were permitted when they arrive to immediately board a plane to their home countries. 'Nobody actually has to go to Alligator Alcatraz,' he said. — Kimberly Leonard and Bruce Ritchie WHERE'S RON? Gov. DeSantis is holding a press conference at 10 a.m. on Marco Island with acting assistant Secretary of the Army D. Lee Forsgren and Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Alexis Lambert. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget that Playbook should look at? Get in touch at: kleonard@ and @leonardkl. ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... HAPPENING MONDAY — State Sen. BLAISE INGOGLIA is being sworn in as chief financial officer at the Florida Capitol's Cabinet meeting room at noon. A private reception will be held after at the Governor's Club. DESANTIS MAP UPHELD — The state Supreme Court on Thursday upheld Florida's congressional map, delivering a win to DeSantis who pushed through the changes that helped Republicans flip and maintain the House majority. The Florida Supreme Court's ruling could be far-reaching; it suggests legislators can sidestep protections for minority voters adopted in 2010. But the legal battle may not end, as one of the groups involved in the litigation said the battle over the district is 'far from over.' The legal challenge centered around the dismantling of a north Florida congressional seat that had been held by then-Rep. Al Lawson, a Black Democrat, and was initially put in place by the state Supreme Court 10 years ago. Lawson was elected in a district that stretched nearly 200 miles and connected Black neighborhoods from just outside Tallahassee to Jacksonville. Legislators, at the insistence of DeSantis, split the original district's Black voters into four districts. — Gary Fineout LADAPO'S NIH PLEA — Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo called on the National Institutes of Health on Thursday to increase focus on people who have experienced side effects after taking a Covid-19 vaccine, even declaring some of the shots to be unfit for human consumption. During a Thursday news conference in Tampa, Ladapo said thousands of people have experienced a negative reaction from Covid vaccines, leading to chronic illness or death. Elderly and chronically ill residents were previously encouraged to take the Covid vaccine, but Ladapo on Thursday warned the shots were too dangerous. — Arek Sarkissian MINOR SPENT THREE DAYS AT 'ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ' — 'In the rush to open a detention camp in the Florida Everglades for 'some of the most vicious' migrants illegally in the country, state and federal officers detained a 15-year-old boy with no criminal record and sent him in handcuffs to Alligator Alcatraz,' report Claire Healy and Ana Ceballos of the Miami Herald. The response: Hartman said on X that the minor lied about his age to ICE and was moved when he admitted it. 'This is one of many problems with illegal immigration: individuals are in our country without any way to verify their identity,' she said. 'ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ' HAZARDS — 'Two weeks after it opened, a temporary migrant detention center in the Everglades is facing expensive logistical challenges: portable toilets routinely back up, sewage needs to be collected and trucked out, and swarms of mosquitoes attack detainees and staff alike,' report Lori Rozsa, David Ovalle and Rachel Hatzipanagos of The Washington Post. 'Without permanent structures, electricity or running water, drinking and bathing water has to be brought in several times a day but is still in short supply, and rainwater leaks into the tents that protect detainees' chain-link cells, according to interviews with three former guards and phone interviews with detainees.' The response: 'The plumbing and sewage claims are false. The facility is in good working order, and detainees have access to drinking water, showers, and clean facilities for hygiene,' Hartman told WaPo. SIDE APPEAL — The company whose permit request led to legislation banning oil drilling along the Apalachicola River confirmed Thursday it is seeking an alternative route to resolving the issue without litigation. Clearwater Land and Minerals filed a notice earlier this week with the First District Court of Appeal that it is challenging the state's permit denial in June. But the company confirmed Thursday that it asked the Department of Environmental Protection last week for a magistrate to be assigned through a dispute resolution process under state law. Clearwater lawyer TIMOTHY RILEY said while the company respects the 'will of the Legislature and the governor' in signing the drilling ban legislation into law, it now asks the state 'to honor the Constitution by affording due process and protecting property rights.' Apalachicola Riverkeeper, whose legal challenge led to the permit denial, did not respond to a request for comment. DEP denied the company's permit request last month after an administrative law judge said that an oil spill in Calhoun County would have 'catastrophic consequences' for surrounding streams and swamps. Riverkeeper's CAMERON BAXLEY said Wednesday in response to the court appeal that 'it does not alter the fact that the court previously ruled in favor of protecting our environment and upholding sound science and law.' — Bruce Ritchie COURT BACKS PCS — The state Supreme Court on Thursday backed state regulators in a legal challenge to a 2021 Florida Power & Light Co. rate-hike request settlement. The court, by a 6-1 margin, backed the Public Service Commission in a challenge filed by energy justice groups after sending the $1.5 billion rate case back to the commission in 2023 for further explanation. Energy justice groups, including Florida Rising, had challenged an FPL program that the utility says allows customers to voluntarily pay more for solar. But the court this time backed the PSC in deciding the approval was based on 'competent, substantial evidence.' — Bruce Ritchie WRONGFUL DEATH CASE — 'A Miami-Dade County jury awarded former state Sen. Daphne Campbell and her family $100 million this week for the wrongful death of her son,' reports Siena Duncan of the Miami Herald. 'Jason Campbell, 23, was killed in 2021 when he was shot while in bed by his girlfriend's estranged lover, according to state prosecutors. The following year, Daphne Campbell, a Democratic former elected official who served the North Miami area in the Florida Legislature for eight years, sued the Biscayne Gardens condo complex where he was slain for failing to provide proper security.' — 'He beat and terrorized the women he said he loved. Florida's justice system nearly failed them,' by Shira Moolten of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. STILL OVERDUE — Four Florida senators haven't filed their annual disclosures that were supposed to be made public with the state's ethics commission by July 1, per News Service of Florida and a Playbook analysis. The documents, which detail net worth, stock holdings, property and debt, are intended to help the public evaluate potential conflicts of interest. Here's who's missing: GOP state Sen. TOM WRIGHT of New Smyrna Beach; NPA state Sen. JASON PIZZO of Sunny Isles Beach; as well as Democratic state Sens. TRACIE DAVIS of Jacksonville and SHEVRIN JONES of Miami Gardens. PENINSULA AND BEYOND MIAMI BACKLASH AMID MIAMI-DADE BUDGET — 'Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz warned county commissioners on Wednesday that Mayor Daniella Levine Cava's proposed budget doesn't have enough money for law enforcement and urged them to approve the $93 million funding boost requested by the Sheriff's Office,' reports Douglas Hanks of the Miami Herald. She said: 'Anything less is defunding the police.' TAMPA TREASURY — Tampa Mayor JANE CASTOR has rolled out a $2 billion budget that especially focuses on resilience against storms and flood relief, as residents continue to recover from last year's hurricanes, reports Nina Moske of the Tampa Bay Times. — 'Investors snapped up Tampa Bay homes damaged by hurricanes Helene and Milton,' reports Rebecca Liebson and Teghan Simonton of the Tampa Bay Times. TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP TODAY — Agriculture Commissioner BROOKE ROLLINS is holding a 12:15 p.m. press conference at a citrus grove in Hardy County that the department is billing as a 'major announcement.' — 'Even after Bondi gains Trump's backing, her survival remains an open question,' reports Glenn Thrush of The New York Times. ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN BIRTHDAYS: State Rep. Allison Tant … former state Rep. Jackie Toledo … (Saturday) former Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry … (Sunday) state Sen. Darryl Rouson … 2nd Judicial Circuit Judge Angela C. Dempsey … William Large, president of Florida Justice Reform Institute.
CBS News
17-07-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Immigration rights groups, ACLU lawsuit alleges Alligator Alcatraz preventing detainees from having attorney access
A class-action lawsuit filed Wednesday alleges that people held at the immigrant-detention center dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz" are being prevented from having access to lawyers and "effectively have no way to contest their detention." "No protocols exist at this facility for providing standard means of confidential attorney-client communication, such as in-person attorney visitation and phone or video calls that are available at any other detention facility, jail or prison," the lawsuit, filed in the federal Southern District of Florida, said. "The only way that detained people can communicate with the outside world is via infrequent access to collect pay phone calls that are monitored and recorded, and last approximately five minutes." The lawsuit also alleges that lawyers have been barred from entering the facility in the Everglades and that officials have "made it virtually impossible for detainees, or their counsel, to file documents required to contest their detention with the immigration court." "No instruction exists as to which immigration courts have been designated for submission of motions for bond redetermination for people detained at Alligator Alcatraz," the lawsuit, filed by attorneys from the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans for Immigrant Justice, said. "As a result, detainees held at Alligator Alcatraz effectively have no way to contest their detention." The ACLU announced the lawsuit Wednesday evening. The lawsuit names as plaintiffs four men who are detained at the facility, three law firms, a legal services organization and an attorney. It names as defendants federal and state officials and agencies, including U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Gov. Ron DeSantis. The lawsuit, which alleges First Amendment and due-process violations, was the latest move in the controversy over the detention facility that the state built in recent weeks at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport, a remote site used for flight training and surrounded by the Everglades and the Big Cypress National Preserve. DeSantis and other state and federal officials have touted the facility as helping carry out President Donald Trump's mass deportation efforts for people who are in the country illegally. The project has drawn national attention, with the state Republican Party even selling Alligator Alcatraz merchandise. But opponents have blasted conditions at the facility and argued it will harm the Everglades and the national preserve. Environmental groups last month filed a separate lawsuit that alleges violations of the National Environmental Policy Act, a federal law that requires evaluating potential environmental impacts before such a project can move forward. State officials have said the federal government will reimburse Florida for costs related to the Everglades facility. They also announced last month plans to build a second detention facility at North Florida's Camp Blanding, a training site for the Florida National Guard. DeSantis indicated Wednesday that plans for the Camp Blanding facility would move forward "once there's a demand" for bed space and more detainees are housed at the Everglades site. "Once there's a demand, then we would be able to go for Camp Blanding. But what I don't want to do is set up Blanding if one is 60 percent full and then the other is 40 percent. I'd rather just channel everyone to Alligator (Alcatraz), since it's easier," DeSantis told reporters at an event in Tampa. DeSantis said the Everglades facility can "easily" house 3,000 to 4,000 detainees. "We have not … received that many illegal aliens there yet, but it has grown pretty quickly," the governor said. Camp Blanding could house fewer detainees and become active "in a week or two," if needed, according to DeSantis. "I don't want to be creating some structure that can hold 2,000 illegals and then we end up having, like,150 there after a week. And I don't think that's the trend," he said. DeSantis administration officials did not respond Wednesday to a request for information about the number of detainees being held at the South Florida center. Friends of the Everglades and the Center for Biological Diversity on June 27 filed the lawsuit about potential environmental impacts. The Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida this week filed a motion seeking to join the case. DeSantis has disputed that the facility threatens the environment, pointing, in part, to the decades-old airport at the site. Also on Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Jose Martinez recused himself from the environmental groups' lawsuit, which was reassigned to U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams. As is typical in such instances, Martinez did not give a reason for stepping aside. Williams recently drew headlines when she held Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier in civil contempt in a lawsuit stemming from a law passed during a February special legislative session that created state crimes for undocumented immigrants who enter or re-enter Florida. Williams in April blocked enforcement of the law, ruling that it likely was preempted by federal immigration-enforcement authority. The contempt ruling stemmed from a letter the Uthmeier sent to law enforcement agencies after she blocked the law.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
South Florida U.S. Rep. Wilson reports a ‘tent city' at Miami ICE detention center
South Florida U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson holds a press conference outside of the Krome North Service Processing Center on April 24, 2025. (Photo courtesy of Alvaro Perpuly with Wilson's office) South Florida's U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson said she saw a 'tent city' that could hold hundreds of people at the Miami immigration detention center on Thursday. Following her visit to the Krome North Service Processing Center, Wilson told reporters she saw a structure that officials at the center told her had been built in 14 days to house hundreds of detained immigrants. She referred to the structure as a tent city, but said the two-story building was made out of a harder material than cloth and that it had pipes for air conditioning. 'It's going to get worse, so every time this facility gets crowded, in order to stay in compliance, they're going to have to build another one, and it only takes 14 days,' Wilson said during a press conference following her visit to Krome. 'And so what they said to us was, as new detainees come in, they try to ship people out, but they can't keep up with the pace because of the Laken Riley Act.' The law Wilson mentioned requires immigration officials to detain immigrants arrested or charged with property crimes, among others. More people could soon enter Krome following the launch this week of a large-scale operation to detain approximately 800 people in Florida in cooperation between federal authorities and state police, according to the Miami Herald. Democrat Wilson, who vowed to keep visiting the detention center, said she hasn't seen overcrowding. However, she believes accounts of detainees, their families, and attorneys. 'This is not my first rodeo. I was down at Homestead when the children were there, and I've been to Krome before, and I've been to prisons all across Florida, especially female prisons,' Wilson said. 'So, I know what they do. They take them on a field trip, so you won't see who is actually in there, but they did admit that they are building a tent city.' Miami-Dade Mayor Levine Cava wasn't allowed to join the visit, Wilson said. Cava requested a tour of the detention center in an April 4 letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Groups such as Americans for Immigrant Justice and the ACLU of Florida have called out conditions at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center, citing accounts of overcrowding, people sleeping on floors, poor sanitation, and two detainee deaths this year. ICE did not respond to the Florida Phoenix's questions about the structure and whether any detainees had been moved out of the center on Thursday. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
