What’s at Stake
America’s immigration landscape has intensified and the public’s access to information surrounding the conditions individuals endure in immigration detention facilities is more important than ever. Public Justice represents the Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice (“ICIJ”) in moving to intervene and unseal records pertaining to the excessive spraying of a pesticide in the Adelanto ICE Processing Center that caused health issues for those detained.
Summary
GEO Group is the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) largest contractor. Since management of Adelanto was taken over by GEO in 2011, there have been dozens of lawsuits alleging GEO and its employees violated civil rights and labor laws. In February of 2020, GEO ordered the spraying of HDQ Neutral, an Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) regulated pesticide, nearly constantly. Plaintiffs, who were detained in Adelanto, allege that double concentrated HDQ Neutral was sprayed directly into the air and on surfaces, including during meals and while people were sleeping in cells.
People detained in Adelanto voiced many health concerns, including experiencing temporary blindness, bleeding from the nose and mouth, blisters, difficulty breathing, and fainting. Plaintiffs allege that their concerns and requests for reduction in HDQ Neutral usage were ignored by GEO. Plaintiffs allege that HDQ Neutral’s manufacturer and supplier, Spartan Chemicals Company, was not only aware of GEO’s increased usage, but set the dilution and internally approved of GEO’s use of the disinfectant at double concentration.
In May 2020, ICIJ sent a letter to ICE and the Adelanto facility administrator detailing the HDQ neutral exposure and health issues experienced by people detained. Two government investigations followed. But in July of 2020, the CEO of GEO testified in front of the Homeland Security Oversight Committee that GEO was following the strict safety guidelines for HDQ Neutral and claimed that no adverse health effects had been reported. Later that month, the EPA conducted a video inspection of Adelanto and informed the facility administrator that GEO was using HDQ Neutral at double the EPA’s recommended concentration. The facility administrator declined to speak to reported health effects, and GEO, with the assistance of Spartan Chemical, continued to spray HDQ Neutral for another four months.
Plaintiffs are people who were formerly detained at Adelanto who suffered adverse health effects as a result of HDQ Neutral. Over 100 court-filed documents have been sealed and redacted in the three years since this class action was filed—with no party providing any reasons why they should be sealed. If unsealed, these materials could provide meaningful insight into the abuses migrants face at the hands of GEO and the corporations they collaborate with.
Core Legal Questions
These motions to intervene and unseal are about vindicating the public’s First Amendment right of access to court records. GEO demonstrates a pattern of depriving detained individuals of their rights, health, and safety—all while making an immense profit off of publicly funded contracts. Records often remain under seal and the cases eventually settle, making it harder for the public to ever see sealed documents. Not only does this minimize and silence already marginalized and targeted people, but it makes future litigation more difficult. There can be no accountability without transparency.