Staff at a federal immigration detention center in Louisiana subdued detainees with prohibited use-of-force techniques including chokeholds and stabbing one with a pen, a federal watchdog has found.
The Department of Homeland Security inspector general’s surprise visit to the Winn Correctional Center revealed that officers also failed to document the use of a “suicide smock” on a detainee, and a five-person team put restraints on another detainee who refused to comply.
Facility staff used prohibited techniques in at least three of five incidents reviewed, but staff did not document promptly or notify U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in four of five incidents reviewed. Video footage for two of the incidents was also incomplete, according to the report.
Prohibited techniques included the neck chokehold and failing to document a medical review and its findings on camera, according to the report.
One officer put a detainee in a chokehold to “gain control” over a physical altercation. As chokeholds are prohibited, facility staff noted that the officer should receive remedial training, according to the report.
In another incident, a five-person team put mechanical restraints and a suicide smock on a detainee after he refused to comply with orders to change into it. Afterward, staff did not document the medical review, against rules.
A different situation involved an officer unable to close a housing unit because a detainee would not remove his hand from the door. After telling the detainee to remove his hand, the officer stabbed the detainee’s right thumb with a pen, puncturing the skin, according to the report.
The facility noted that the officer required disciplinary action. However, staff could not provide documentation showing punishment or retraining.
“This could lead to staff repeating inappropriate use-of-force tactics that could potentially result in property damage, injury, and death,” the report reads.
The report came out a day before Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin testified on Capitol Hill amid civil unrest and violent protests stemming from claims of unsanitary conditions at the Delaney Hall detention facility in Newark, New Jersey.
Detainees have reported squalid living conditions, including contaminated drinking water, spoiled food with insects and moldy bathrooms, resulting in widespread protests, hunger strikes and ongoing lawsuits by New Jersey against the facility’s operators.
The department and Mr. Mullin have denied the accusations.
Facility staff can generally use reasonable force against detainees in necessary circumstances, including preventing escape or maintaining security.
In the Louisiana case, the watchdog recommended that staff comply with ICE detention standards prohibiting chokeholds, properly document use-of-force incidents on time and maintain complete camera footage.
The report detailed noncompliance on multiple fronts: environmental health and safety, food service, missing classified information and medical care, among others. Investigators noted holes in the ceiling, insulation hanging from its tiles and leaking vents in the kitchen.
Facility staff also did not provide adequate access to legal materials, including providing a secure means to save detainees’ legal work and not consistently posting the list of free legal services or the hours and rules for visitation.
