O.C. jails ready for immigration detainees (Orange County Register)

O.C. jails ready for immigration detainees
BY CINDY CARCAMO
THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Updated: Oct. 4, 2010 7:59 a.m.

After months of negotiations, including initial resistance from some local politicians, Orange County is ready to play host to hundreds of detainees suspected of being in the country illegally.

By mid-October up to 838 immigration detainees will reside at Theo Lacy Facility in Orange and James A. Musick Facility near Irvine, an accord between the Orange County Sheriff's Department and Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials.

The agreement makes Orange County a vital partner in providing bed space for ICE officials. Santa Ana already contracts with ICE, providing 200 beds annually since 2006.

As of Tuesday morning, 509 detainees – 401 in Theo Lacy and 108 in Musick – were in Orange County.

The first detainees arrived Aug 9 at Theo Lacy and about a month later to Musick. For now, the jails are only taking male detainees. Musick is expected to eventually house up to 110 female detainees.

Often referred to as "beds for feds," a cash-strapped Sheriff's Department struck the deal with federal officials this summer, selling their vacant bed space for $118 per detainee per day.

The deal stands to generate $30 million in revenue for the Sheriff's Department. Officials there say the money helped save jobs at the department.

"We would have had to lay off some deputies," said Sheriff's spokesman John McDonald.

In exchange, ICE officials who have ramped up immigration enforcement can meet the demand for much-needed bed space.

Immigration officials say the detainees at the jails are held on administrative violations and therefore separated from the county's criminal population at the same facilities.

Most ICE detainees are those suspected of being in the country illegally who also have some sort of criminal record – from misdemeanor driving under the influence and petty theft to felony aggravated assault and homicide.

Other detainees do not have criminal records and instead are being held because they are suspected of being in the country illegally, avoided a past deportation order, or returned after a prior deportation.

The detainees are held for a variety of reasons and are awaiting deportation, hearings, asylum, appeals, or travel documents.

Critics say the contracts are a departure from what Department of Homeland Security has promised as an overhaul of the immigration detention system.

ICE officials had said the overhaul included moving away from contracting with local authorities to provide beds for its detainees.

Immigration officials had touted the idea of building their own facilities specifically to fit the needs of their detainee population. The overhaul, officials said, is aimed at reducing abuse within its detention system.

The contracts have come under fire by civil rights organization attorneys who have launched lawsuits against ICE for alleged abuse. They point to the various allegations of in-detention deaths and inhumane treatment of detainees at municipal jails that contract with ICE.

ICE officials stress that detention is not punitive and that they're committed to providing safe and humane experiences for detainees.

Contracting with municipalities for bed space still falls within the department's plan for detention reform, said Los Angeles ICE Field Office Director Timothy Robbins.

"You need to look at the needs of the location," Robbins said. "It doesn't mean you can't build a facility and still have contracts. Detention reform means the treatment and well being of the detainee we house, not necessarily the structure they're detained in."

Robbins also pointed to national detention standards that contract jails need to meet.

For instance, Sheriff's officials had to re-train deputies to oversee this particular population and had to partition their once-communal showers for privacy, among other changes. At Musick, officials agreed to hire a round-the-clock nurse.

As part of implementing the agreement, the department is in the early stages of renovation of the two facilities, including the eventual installation of three courtrooms at Musick. The expected cost is $6 million.

Detainees with more serious offenses are housed in a jail-like setting at Theo Lacy. Those with lower level criminal backgrounds or none at all are housed in what used to be the barracks for inmate workers. There, they have access to green-space and other recreational activities, such as a ping pong table and get more outdoor time than the criminal population at the jail.

Still, most detainees aim to end up at Musick, also known as "the farm" by detainees and guards. Once a full-scale working farm that still holds a couple thousand chickens, Musick resembles more of a "camping experience" than a jail, several detainees said. Detainees with minimal criminal backgrounds, such as misdemeanors or no criminal record and in basically good health end up at Musick.

Demand for bed space remains high, especially with the recent implementation of a variety of programs – such as Secure Communities – aimed at nabbing people who are in the country illegally with criminal records.

"We're continuing to look for beds," Robbins said.