During our unannounced inspection of Eloy Federal Contract Facility (Eloy) in Eloy, Arizona, we found facility and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) staff complied with ICE’s Performance-Based National Detention Standards 2011, revised December 2016, for admission, classification, kitchen conditions, timely request responses, the voluntary work program, and medical care. Facility and ICE staff did not fully comply with standards for use of force, staff-detainee communications, access to legal materials, segregation, grievances, personal hygiene, and recreation. We found: • Facility staff did not preserve closed-circuit television footage for four of five use of force incidents we reviewed and did not fully record staff member introductions for one calculated use of force incident. • Facility and ICE staff did not always respond to detainee requests in a language they could understand. • The facility did not install word processing or legal research software on all computers in the law library, and computers were not accessible to wheelchair users. • ICE did not always provide detainees with their segregation orders in a language they could understand or provide access to meaningful physical exercise in an appropriately equipped area. • Facility staff did not always place a copy of grievances in detainee files or reply to detainee grievances within the required timeframe.
Open Recommendations
| Recommendation Number | Significant Recommendation | Recommended Questioned Costs | Recommended Funds for Better Use | Additional Details | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
| Ensure facility staff audio visually record all use of force incidents and maintain the recordings for a minimum of 6 years. | |||||
| 2 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
| Ensure facility staff produce an audiovisual recording before each calculated use of force incident where the faces of all team members appear (with helmets removed and heads uncovered), one at a time, with staff identifying themselves by name and title. | |||||
| 3 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
| Ensure that ICE and facility staff provide responses to detainee requests in a language detainees can understand. | |||||
| 4 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
| Ensure computers intended for legal work have the necessary software to draft legal documents and conduct legal research. | |||||
| 7 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
| Ensure facility and ICE staff promptly place detainee grievances in detention files. | |||||
| 8 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
| Ensure facility staff responsible for reviewing detainee grievances respond in a timely manner. | |||||
| 10 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
| Provide detainees in SMU access to commensurate recreational areas as are available to detainees housed in general population, specifically areas that include exercise opportunities and equipment. | |||||
