By Lauren Lifke
A detention facility in Estancia for Immigration and Customs Enforcement is still operating without a contract after its contract expired in October.
Torrance County Manager Jordan Barela told The Independent that the county had an intergovernmental agreement with ICE that expired Oct. 31. The facility has since been operating without a new agreement, Barela said.
Advocacy groups have alleged that the facility is holding detainees unlawfully. Torrance County has reached out to ICE to check for status updates, and little progress has been made, Barela said.
“From what I’ve been told, ICE is still evaluating the terms and conditions of the agreement,” Barela said.
Last month, U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich called for the facility to close down in a letter to ICE acting director Todd Lyons.
“Due to inadequate staffing and inhumane living conditions, the Department of Homeland Security’s own Inspector General called for the closure of the facility back in 2022,” Heinrich wrote in a statement to The Independent. “Conditions have not improved, and now they’re purportedly running the facility without a contract.”
On Oct. 27, ICE met with Torrance County officials regarding a short-term contract, according to last month’s statement. Discussions stalled after a lapse in communication from ICE, the statement reads. Heinrich’s office has not heard back from ICE as of Dec. 4.
“I remain deeply concerned about the situation at ICE’s Torrance County Detention Facility,” Heinrich told New Mexico Political Report.