Inside California’s ICE facilities: deaths, denied care, and “dog food”

The exterior of Imperial Regional Detention Facility in Calexico, California (Cal DOJ)

During the second Trump administration, the population detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has ballooned. But little is known about what actually goes on inside ICE detention facilities. The California Department of Justice (Cal DOJ), however, just released a detailed accounting of conditions at ICE facilities in the state. The report, which involved inspections at seven ICE facilities that operate in the state, reveals a human rights crisis, including grossly inadequate access to medical care.

The Cal DOJ review team, citing Popular Information’s reporting, investigated the impact of the Trump administration’s October 2025 decision to stop processing payments for third parties who provide medical care for ICE detainees.

ICE has stopped paying for detainee medical treatment

Cal DOJ concluded that decision “has caused widespread disruption in the provision of appropriate medical care at facilities in California.”

The Cal DOJ inspections uncovered numerous examples where ICE detainees were denied critical care from outside providers. During a site visit to the California City Detention Facility (Cal City) in November 2025, a patient “reported needing to see an eye specialist,” but was told that the detention center was “not referring to specialists.” Another detainee sought treatment for pain from a broken elbow, but was told that “no physical therapy or occupational therapy is offered.” A detainee requiring treatment for kidney stones was told that the detention center does not “have that.”

The report also alleges that Cal City began accepting female detainees before being “equipped to provide preventive or acute female health care on site” and was not making “referrals for offsite gynecology care.”

In November 2025, a group of detainees at Cal City filed a class action lawsuit against ICE and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). In the lawsuit, detainees reported inhumane conditions, including “a lack of medical care.” In February 2026, the court issued a preliminary order requiring ICE to provide detainees adequate access to health care, including “timely approval and access to medical specialists.”

On February 27, 2026, Alberto Gutiérrez Reyes died after being held at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center and “reportedly submitting multiple requests for medical attention” that his family claims were denied. Between September 2025 and March 2026, four people died at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center, and “the families of the deceased allege medical care deficiencies” in all four instances, according to Cal DOJ.

Despite the documented issues, as of today, ICE has still not resumed reimbursement for third-party medical providers. The freeze in reimbursements has coincided with a massive spike in detainee deaths across the country.

ICE has not paid for detainee medical care for 7 months

“Overcrowding, inadequate food, excessive use of force”

The inhumane conditions in California ICE detention centers extend far beyond inadequate medical care. During the investigation, the Cal DOJ found that ICE detainees in seven facilities dealt with “overcrowding, inadequate food, excessive use of force by detention facility guards, and inadequate clothing.”

According to the Cal DOJ, one of the primary complaints shared by detainees across all seven detention centers was about the availability and quality of food. At most of the facilities, detainees reported frequently being given food that was undercooked, frozen, expired, and rotting. Detainees described their meals as “dog food” and in many cases reported having very limited access to servings of fruit and protein.

The Cal DOJ also found that access to clean drinking water has been an issue for detainees. Detainees at various facilities describe the water as murky and metallic-tasting. In some cases, the water appeared to cause illness in detainees, including sore throats and diarrhea.

Overcrowding has been another major issue. One California facility, Otay Mesa, is among the most overcrowded detention centers in the country, with about 25% more detainees than it has capacity for. The report found that housing units in the facility had 20 to 30 more detainees than they were designed for, in some cases leading elderly detainees to sleep on cots on the floor. The crowding overwhelmed the facility’s cleaning schedule, leaving bathrooms and showers covered in mold, feces, and trash.

The Cal DOJ also found that at Otay Mesa, detainees were strip searched after every non-legal contact visit. This practice “has an overwhelming impact on the mental health and dignity of detainees,” the report states. “Female detainees described having to fully undress in front of officers, in some cases including male officers, even when menstruating. Both male and female detainees described feeling ‘violated’ and the experience as ‘humiliating’ and ‘denigrating.’”

Cal City was identified as having particularly poor conditions, despite being the state’s newest detention center. The report says that several Cal City detainees wept during their interviews with California DOJ officials. The detainees described being constantly cold because the facility’s air conditioning was set to a very low temperature, even in cold weather. The detainees were not given any additional clothing or blankets until just prior to the visit from state officials. Detainees who tried to cover air conditioning vents to stay warm were reportedly punished.