Immigrants detained in Los Angeles face horrifying conditions
As of July 1, more than 56,000 immigrants are being held in detention. Going forward, this number is expected to dramatically increase, as, with the passing of the recent budget, ICE is now the highest-funded law enforcement agency in the country. In fact, the ICE budget is now bigger than most of the world’s militaries.
Most of the people currently in ICE custody have no criminal record. All have families who love them. Here are some stories of family members and lawyers who had to wait hours to see detainees at a Los Angeles detention center, or even to find out if they are inside.
Christina Jimenez came to the facility to find her step-father, Mario Alberto Del Cid Solares, who was detained in a Home Depot parking lot. Jimenez said that her step-father was “always hustling,” and that “he could be sick and he’s still trying to make it out to work.” It took Jimenez two days to find out where he was being held. Now she worries that he may be sent to a country other than Guatemala, where he is from.
Estrella Rosas and her mother came to find Rosa’s sister, Andrea Velez. Velez, who is a U.S. citizen, was handcuffed and put in a car without license plates when she was on her way to work. They found out that she was not inside, but instead was being held at the federal facility next door, allegedly for obstructing immigration officers. She was released the next day.
Kim Carver, a lawyer with the Trans Latino Coalition, came to find her client, a transgender Honduran woman who was detained during an immigration interview, even though the asylum officer told her she had a credible case. Carver found out her client had been transferred to Texas earlier that morning.
Another lawyer said she was not allowed to give snacks or water to her client, even though he has only been given one water bottle in two days.
Mayra Segura came looking for her uncle, whose popsicle stand was abandoned in the middle of the street.
Yadira Almadaz was only able to see her niece’s boyfriend for five minutes. He was still wearing the same clothes he wore a week earlier at the asylum appointment where he was arrested. He said he had only been given cookies and chips to eat.
Jasmin Camacho Picazo came to see her husband, whose car was left on the side of the road, the window smashed and the keys still in the ignition, after his arrest. He told her that his back injury has been aggravated from sleeping on the floor, and that people were so thirsty they were drinking toilet water. Her son keeps asking, “Is Papa going to pick me up from school?”
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