Management Alert - DHS Needs to Address Dangerous Overcrowding Among Single Adults at El Paso Del Norte Processing Center

During the week of May 6, 2019, we visited five Border Patrol stations and two ports of entry in the El Paso sector as part of our unannounced spot inspections of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) holding facilities and observed dangerous holding conditions at the Paso Del Norte Bridge (PDT) Border Patrol station that require immediate attention. Specifically, PDT does not have the capacity to hold the hundreds currently in custody safely, and has held the majority of its detainees beyond the 72 hours outlined in CBP’s Transport, Escort, Detention and Search standards. We recommend that the DHS take immediate steps to alleviate dangerous overcrowding at PDT.