ICE Facilities Triple Top Health Grades as Deaths Rise to Deadliest Year Since 2004
Updated
Updated · CalMatters · Aug 18
ICE Facilities Triple Top Health Grades as Deaths Rise to Deadliest Year Since 2004
1 articles · Updated · CalMatters · Aug 18
Summary
A Project on Government Oversight investigation found ICE detention centers kept receiving high internal health and safety scores under Trump even as complaints mounted over bad water, untrained staff and delayed medical care.
The report says facilities with ICE’s top “superior” grade tripled since 2024 because detention standards were weakened and inspections became less frequent.
Those ratings coincided with worsening outcomes: 2025 was the deadliest year in ICE custody since 2004, and Adelanto alone recorded four deaths since August 2025 — the most of any facility.
ICE was holding at least 65,000 people on July 11, yet recorded violations fell 68% from 2022 to 2025, a drop the watchdog says reflects grading practices more than safer conditions.
Because two consecutive failed inspections can jeopardize federal funding, the report says facilities rarely received failing grades from fiscal 2022 through 2026, giving prison operators a ready defense against abuse allegations.