Immigration detentions tax federal prisons

Kevin Johnson, USA TODAY Published 7:01 p.m. ET June 27, 2018

... Early this month, the administration took the extraordinary step of re-directing more than 1,600 adult immigration detainees and asylum seekers to the federal prison system, despite persistent staff shortages throughout the 122-facility network that have forced teachers, food service workers, secretaries and nurses to fill in as guards.

Hundreds of the detainees have been scattered as far as Oregon and Washington state, where some Bureau of Prisons staffers and government officials say the rules that govern the detention of convicted felons do not necessarily apply to those awaiting court hearings on non-criminal matters, including asylum.

Union officials are reporting communications breakdowns due to language barriers and a lack of translators. The influx is also taxing medical staffers who are caring both for the convicted felons and the detainee population without additional personnel.


"We just don't have the resources to keep up," said John Kostelnick, chief of the prison workers union in Victorville, Calif., where about 1,000 detainees are being housed. "All of this happened with very little notice. I fear this could blow up" ...

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/06/27/immigration-detentions-tax-federal-prisons-beyond-border/734857002/