POLITICS
The Times obtains Homeland Security memos showing dismal border facility conditions
BY HAMED ALEAZIZSTAFF WRITER
JUNE 30, 2023 3 AM PT
In early May, as the country watched the end of a Trump-era border policy, Title 42, come down, government officials struggled to handle a massive increase in arrests. The numbers of migrants in custody skyrocketed to 28,000 — above capacity.
As the arrests shot up and detention numbers followed, I wondered what the conditions within the government facilities looked like. Past increases in detention numbers usually meant that conditions within the facilities suffered and overcrowding followed.
I’m Hamed Aleaziz and I cover immigration for the Los Angeles Times. This week, we’re going to discuss dismal conditions at the border.
The reports
Little did we know that government officials from the under-the-radar Office of the Immigration Detention Ombudsman were visiting border facilities to witness conditions and write them up for Department of Homeland Security leadership. These raw reports, which The Times obtained, provide readers with vivid descriptions of what officials heard and witnessed when they visited.
https://www.latimes.com/politics/newsletter/2023-06-30/essential-politics-friday-template-essential-politics
