GEO Group

GEO Group

A video screenshot of Senior Policy Fellow Aaron Reichlin-Melnick speaking about ICE warehouses

ICE’s Warehouse Purchases Herald New Model for Immigration Detention

ICE is rapidly reshaping the U.S. immigration detention system by purchasing and converting commercial warehouses into large-scale detention facilities. Backed by an unprecedented $45 billion funding boost, this new “reengineered” model aims to dramatically expand capacity and centralize operations—raising significant concerns about mass detention, oversight, and the future of immigration enforcement. Read More

Biden Keeps Ties with Billion-Dollar Business of Immigration Detention, Despite Reports of Serious Abuse

Biden Keeps Ties with Billion-Dollar Business of Immigration Detention, Despite Reports of Serious Abuse

On Thanksgiving Day 2017, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers arrested Kamyar Samimi—a lawful permanent resident with a decade-old conviction for drug possession—and sent him to the privately run ICE Processing Center in Aurora, Colorado. Two weeks later, he was dead. Facility staff had forced him to stop methadone… Read More

New Complaint Shows ICE’s Use of Solitary Confinement Is Excessive

New Complaint Shows ICE’s Use of Solitary Confinement Is Excessive

“If I spoke too loudly, solitary. If I climbed on top of a table to get a guard’s attention, solitary. If I had suicidal thoughts, solitary. When the guards would tease me about being deported back to my home country and make airplane sounds at me and gesture like a… Read More

Florida Wants All New Migrants Arriving at the Border Locked Up. The Courts are Helping.

Florida Wants All New Migrants Arriving at the Border Locked Up. The Courts are Helping.

Florida officials think the federal government must detain everyone – or virtually everyone – who arrives at the U.S.-Mexico border without a visa. And it is using the courts to try to make that happen. Just last week, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit refused to… Read More

From Farm to Your Thanksgiving Table: America’s Food Supply Relies on Immigrant Crop Workers

From Farm to Your Thanksgiving Table: America’s Food Supply Relies on Immigrant Crop Workers

As Thanksgiving approaches, many cooks are busy planning their holiday meals. However, this year’s Thanksgiving meals will likely be more expensive as food prices soar. This is partly due to America’s ongoing labor shortage in agriculture, especially for fruit and vegetable crop production, where 57.0% of workers are… Read More

Appellate Court Finds California’s Private Prison Ban Is Likely Unconstitutional

Appellate Court Finds California’s Private Prison Ban Is Likely Unconstitutional

An appellate court recently ruled that California’s state law banning private prisons—including immigration detention centers—is likely unconstitutional. The decision is a significant blow to advocates fighting to end immigration detention in California and nationwide. In its September 26 decision, the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that… Read More

USCIS Lengthens Work Permit Automatic Extension Period to Address Adjudication Delays

USCIS Lengthens Work Permit Automatic Extension Period to Address Adjudication Delays

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a temporary rule last week that automatically extends employment authorization for certain noncitizens waiting for USCIS to process their work permit renewal applications. As of December 2021, over 80,000 noncitizens had lost or would soon lose the right to work because… Read More

$1/Day Labor Program for Immigrants in Detention Ruled Unlawful in Washington State

$1/Day Labor Program for Immigrants in Detention Ruled Unlawful in Washington State

In a landmark court decision, Geo Group—one of the largest private prison companies that own and/or manage dozens of immigrant detention centers across the United States—was found to have violated Washington state’s minimum wage laws. The company has been ordered to pay over $23 million, $17.3 million of which will… Read More

Republicans Introduced 11 New Anti-Immigration Bills. Here’s What’s at Stake If They Pass.

Republicans Introduced 11 New Anti-Immigration Bills. Here’s What’s at Stake If They Pass.

A group of Republican lawmakers recently introduced a slew of anti-immigration bills in the House of Representatives and Senate. The bills primarily target people’s rights to seek asylum in the United States, as well as re-up a laundry list of anti-immigration initiatives from the Trump administration. Read More

The Senate Reveals CBP Violated the Law by Rounding Up Migrants — In Guatemala

The Senate Reveals CBP Violated the Law by Rounding Up Migrants — In Guatemala

As the Trump administration cracked down on migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border, it has often invoked the concept of “national sovereignty” to justify drastic policy changes. But a new Senate report reveals that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) itself violated the sovereignty of another nation. Read More

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