The Trump administration’s mass deportation campaign led to overcrowding and deteriorating medical care at the seven immigration detention facilities operating in California last year, according to a report released on Friday, May 15.
Six detainees died in ICE custody between September 2025 and March 2026 — the highest number since the California Department of Justice started conducting reviews in 2017, the 175-page “Immigration Detention in California” found.
The deaths, coupled with the DOJ’s findings of substandard conditions that fail to meet U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s own detention standards, raise concerns about the facilities’ ability to safely detain a growing detainee population while underscoring the need for greater accountability and oversight, according to California Attorney General Rob Bonta.
The federal government’s mass deportation campaign “has led to a shocking increase in detainee populations — and facilities have been alarmingly unprepared to meet this new demand,” Bonta said in a statement.
“During their inspections, my team found evidence of inadequate medical care and heard countless reports of disturbing, unsafe, and unsanitary conditions and a lack of basic necessities,” he said. “This is cruel, inhumane, and unacceptable — and it is past time for the Trump Administration to do something about it. My office has worked tirelessly to shine a light on conditions at these facilities — and I hope this report will generate the rightful outrage and urgency necessary to improve conditions and protect detainees’ civil rights.”
A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security — of which ICE is a division — said in a statement that those who are in the U.S. illegally can avoid detention and collect $2,600 and a free flight to their home country by self-deporting.
“We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right, legal way to live the American dream,” according to DHS. “If not, you will be arrested and deported without a chance to return.”
The statement did not directly address conditions in ICE facilities alleged in the DOJ report, but emphasized that the well-being of detainees is a top priority.
“No lawbreakers in the history of human civilization have been treated better than illegal aliens in the United States,” according to DHS.
“It is a longstanding practice to provide comprehensive medical care from the moment an alien enters ICE custody. This includes medical, dental and mental health intake screening within 12 hours of arriving at each detention facility, a full health assessment within 14 days of entering ICE custody or arrival at a facility and access to medical appointments and 24-hour emergency care.”
“This is the best health care many aliens have received in their entire lives,” the DHS spokesperson said. “Meals are certified by dieticians. Ensuring the safety, security and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority at ICE.”
In the report, the DOJ determined the detainee population in California grew 162%, from 2,300 to more than 6,000 detainees between site visits in 2023 and those last year. Most detainees had no criminal history and were classified as low security.
The inspected facilities include the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego, the Adelanto ICE Processing Center in San Bernardino County, the Imperial Regional Detention Facility near the U.S.-Mexico border in Calexico, the newly opened California City Detention Facility in Kern County and the Golden State Annex in McFarland in the San Joaquin Valley.
While finalizing the report, DOJ became aware that an eighth facility, Central Valley Annex, also in McFarland, began to receive ICE detainees in April 2026, and reports suggest ICE may seek to open additional facilities in the future, officials said.
During its review process, in 2025, DOJ staff — with support from correctional and health care experts — toured each facility, reviewed and analyzed logs, policies, detainee records and other documentation, and interviewed detention staff and 194 detained individuals across the facilities.
The increase in detainees, according to the state DOJ, appears to be driven by the Trump administration’s refusal to release detainees on bond, coupled with its aggressive mass detention and deportation campaign.
Despite the administration’s claims it has targeted “criminals,” most of the detainees had no criminal history and were classified as low security, the report stated.
The report determined that as the detainee population increased, most facilities’ intake processes and other operations were overwhelmed. The DOJ said it identified multiple violations of ICE’s own detention standards relating to conditions of confinement and basic medical health care at allseven active facilities in 2025, although there was variation in detaineeexperience across these facilities.
The DOJ also found worsening conditions for detainees who were experiencing inadequate medical care, delay in medical treatment, overcrowding, inadequate food, excessive use of force by detention facility guards and inadequate clothing, violating standards such as those guaranteeing nutritious meals, an adequate environment, reasonable uses of force and adequate medical care.
The state law mandating facility inspections expires next year. A bill by state Sen. María Elena Durazo (D-Los Angeles) would make the inspections permanent.