Overview
- Rep. Yassamin Ansari conducted an unannounced inspection of the Phoenix ICE field office on Wednesday and found 29 people in custody while she was not allowed to speak with detainees.
- Arizona Mirror reporting and FOIA-derived Deportation Data Project records show average stays at the facility have risen to roughly 19–20 hours and include individual cases lasting months, such as 211 days in 2022 and over 80 days this year.
- Public records obtained by reporters show the Phoenix Fire Department responded to the facility 11 times between December 2025 and March 2026, almost all resulting in emergency (Code 3) hospital transports for seizures, chest pain, pregnancy concerns and serious injuries.
- ICE disputed the Mirror’s analysis and says the site does not hold people longer than 12 hours, even as a federal court in June vacated an ICE waiver that had removed that 12-hour limit and ICE told Ansari the waiver was lifted in July.
- The facility lacks on-site medical care, beds and detainee-accessible showers, past PREA audits in 2017 and 2022 found deficiencies, and advocates warn the pattern of longer holds and medical emergencies could prompt further congressional oversight and legal action.