U.S. federal Judge Lewis Kaplan granted a temporary restraining order on Tuesday requiring Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to make immediate changes at 26 Federal Plaza, government building, Manhattan where one floor is used to detain migrants and asylum seekers. This direction from the judge comes to address poor conditions at the New York City facility after reports surfaced of overcrowding, insufficient food, and unsanitary surroundings.
“My conclusion here is that there is a very serious threat of continuing irreparable injury, given the conditions that I’ve been told about,” Judge Kaplan said.
The judge’s order directs the government to reduce crowding at the holding area, keep it clean, and provide sleeping mats for those held there. It also requires that cells be cleaned three times a day and stocked with essentials like soap, towels, toilet paper, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and feminine hygiene products.
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Kaplan also ordered that each person be given at least 50 square feet of space, cutting the largest room’s capacity from more than 40 detainees to about 15. He further directed immigration officials to guarantee that those in custody can make private legal phone calls, free from monitoring or recording to protect their right to representation.
The court’s action follows a complaint from attorneys representing Peruvian asylum-seeker Sergio Alberto Barco Mercado, who was detained on Aug. 8 after showing up for a scheduled court hearing. Held at 26 Federal Plaza, Barco Mercado and others, his lawyers claim, endured “crowded, squalid, and punitive conditions” and were denied legal access immediately after his arrest. In his testimony, Barco Mercado described the holding room as “extremely crowded” and “smelled of sewage,” adding that the environment worsened a tooth infection that caused his face to swell and affected his speech.
“We did not always get enough water,” Mercado said. “There was one guard who would sometimes hold a bottle of water up and people would wait to have him squirt some into our mouths, like we were animals.”
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According to court filings, several detainees reported being held in the 26 Federal Plaza building without soap, toothbrushes, or other basic hygiene supplies. They alleged they were served inedible “slop” and forced to endure the “horrific stench” of sweat, urine, and feces, made worse by the presence of open toilets in the rooms. The lawsuit also recounted the experience of one woman on her period who was unable to access menstrual products because the women in her cell were given only two to share.
Jeffrey S. Oestericher, a representative for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York said, “I think we all agree that conditions at 26 Federal Plaza need to be humane, and we obviously share that belief.” While Nancy Zanello, assistant director of ICE’s New York City Field Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations, noted that as of Monday, only 24 people were being held across the building’s four holding rooms which is far below the 154-person capacity set by the city fire marshal. She added that each room has a toilet and sink with hygiene supplies on hand including soap, teeth-cleaning wipes, and feminine products.