Report details harsh conditions at Adelanto CA immigration facility

Nooses in cells, rotting teeth — report details harsh conditions at Adelanto immigration facility

By Brittny Mejia  and Paloma Esquivel

Oct 02, 2018 | 1:15 PM

Federal inspectors have issued a scathing report on conditions at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center, which houses more than 1,000 immigrant detainees in the high desert, after officials found nooses made of bed sheets in cells, improper use of disciplinary segregation and inadequate medical care during an unannounced visit to the facility earlier this year.

The report comes one year after immigrant advocates raised alarms about conditions at the facility after three detainees died there in a three-month period in 2017. One of them, Osmar Epifanio Gonzalez-Gadba, 32, of Nicaragua, died six days after he was found hanging from bed sheets in his cell.

The Los Angeles Times reported in August 2017 that there were at least five attempted suicides at the facility, according to a review of 911 calls.

The Department of Homeland Security’s Office of the Inspector General, which is tasked with providing independent oversight of DHS, issued the alert late last month, saying the problems officials found during their visit in May “pose significant health and safety risks at the facility" and are in need of immediate attention.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment. But the report notes that ICE agreed with a recommendation to conduct a full review of the facility and its management by the GEO Group, which owns and operates the facility.

During their May visit, inspectors found braided bed sheets, referred to as “nooses” by staff and detainees, hanging from vents in about 15 of 20 male detainee cells.

“When we asked two contract guards who oversaw the housing units why they did not remove the bed sheets, they echoed it was not a high priority,” the report says. ICE’s “lack of response to address this matter at the Adelanto Center shows a disregard for detainee health and safety.”

The report notes that in the months after Gonzalez' suicide, ICE compliance reports documented at least three suicide attempts by hanging at Adelanto, two of which specifically used bed sheets.

One detainee told inspectors that he had seen “a few attempted suicides using the braided sheets by the vents.”

“The guards laugh at them and call them ‘suicide failures’ once they are back from medical,” the detainee told officials.

The report also notes that some detainees reported waiting “weeks and months” to see a doctor and said that appointments were canceled without explanation, with detainees placed back on the waiting list.

From November 2017 to April 2018, detainees filed 80 medical grievances with the facility for not receiving urgent care, not being seen for months for persistent health conditions and not receiving prescribed medication, according to the report.

The report notes that ICE’s own death reviews for three Adelanto detainees who died since 2015 also cited medical care deficiencies related to providing necessary and adequate care in a timely manner.

“ICE must take these continuing violations seriously and address them immediately,” the report states.

The report also highlights serious problems with dental care at the facility, saying detainees are placed on waitlists for months and, sometimes, years to receive basic care, “resulting in tooth loss and unnecessary extractions in some cases.”

No detainees have received fillings in the last four years, according to the report. One detainee reported multiple teeth falling out while waiting more than two years for cavities to be filled.

One dentist at the facility said he did not have time to complete cleanings or fillings, according to the report.

“The dentist dismissed the necessity of fillings if patients commit to brushing and flossing,” the report states. “Floss is only available through detainee commissary accounts, but the dentist suggested detainees could use string from their socks to floss if they were dedicated to dental hygiene.”

Above is from:  http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-adelanto-oig-20181002-story.html