A federal judge has issued an order to improve conditions at the Migrant Detention Center in New York, following reports of human rights violations. These violations included punitive treatment, severe overcrowding, and a lack of adequate healthcare and food. Federal Judge Lewis Kaplan, who issued the ruling, stated: “My conclusion is that there is a very serious risk of irreparable harm due to the conditions that have been brought to my attention.”
According to the court order, the Immigration and Customs Administration must reduce the number of detainees, improve healthcare, ensure proper hygiene, and provide adequate sleeping arrangements at the Federal Plaza 26 detention center, which houses a floor specifically for asylum seekers and migrants. The ruling also obliges the government to thoroughly clean the cells three times a day and to supply sufficient soap, toilet paper, toothpaste, toothbrushes, towels, and women’s hygiene products.
The court order also required allocating 4.6 square meters of space per detainee, effectively reducing the number of people held in large cells from 40 to 15. Judge Kaplan further ruled that detainees must be allowed to make confidential, unmonitored phone calls with their lawyers.
The lawyer of asylum seeker Sergio Alberto Barco Mercado filed a complaint over the poor conditions at the detention center, citing punitive treatment and restrictions on communication with legal counsel. Testifying before the court, the asylum seeker described the cells as severely overcrowded and reeking of sewage and said he suffered a dental infection that caused facial swelling and disfigurement. Barco Mercado added, “We did not always receive enough water. At times, a guard would lift a bottle, and people had to wait for him to spray it into our mouths, as if we were animals.” The court subsequently ordered Mercado’s transfer to another detention facility in northern New York.
According to court records, many detainees complained about the lack of hygiene supplies and inadequate meals, which they described as “unclean waste.” Other complaints highlighted the shortage of women’s necessities. The filings also included a mobile phone video showing severe overcrowding and the absence of proper sleeping arrangements.
During a court hearing, the prosecutor’s representative admitted that “the inhumane conditions are unacceptable and cannot be tolerated.” The representative added, “I believe we all agree that conditions at Plaza 26 must meet human standards, and it is clear that this is a shared conviction.”
The government sought to downplay the growing number of complaints about the detention center. Nancy Zanello, Associate Director of ICE’s New York City Field Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations, stated that the four cells designated for asylum seekers and migrants were operating below capacity, holding only 24 people despite a maximum capacity of 154.
