On Tuesday, California senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff toured the California City Correctional Facility, a private prison now being run under the supervision of the Department of Homeland Security.
Both senators say they are concerned about the conditions at the Kern County ICE detention facility. Senator Schiff said most of the detainees are in pods of roughly 80 people, most living two to a cell, and has concerns about medical care on a general and specific level.
“I spoke with one woman who is diabetic. It was on her intake form,” Schiff said. “She's been here for two months and has yet to receive treatment for her diabetes. That is very frightening.”
Senator Padilla said while they did receive assurances from DHS officials that conditions would improve, he is not convinced they will
“I’m even more concerned than I was when I arrived, and to underscore the point, if the administration is true to their word, the population here is only going to grow,” he said.
Currently, the center holds about 1,450 detainees, but both senators believe the administration has plans to bring the number of detainees up to the facility's capacity of 2,500 people.
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