Heartland Alliance’s National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) has filed suit on behalf of seven immigrants held by ICE at the Jefferson County Justice Center, located in Mt. Vernon, Illinois. The lawsuit alleges that the facility was found deficient on two consecutive inspections, and that immigrant detainees were subjected to "unsanitary conditions," and provided with "inadequate health care." NIJC claims to have obtained documented reports of widespread proliferation of MRSA, tuberculosis, respiratory infections, and skin fungi.
From the NIJC website:
Immigrants who were held in ICE custody at Jefferson County during fall 2012 paint a grim picture: requests for medical treatment were repeatedly ignored, showers and restrooms were crusted with mold, drinking water was brown and putrid, jail pods were poorly ventilated, jail uniforms were tattered and soiled, and immigrants had no outdoor recreation or meaningful access to sunlight.
Click here to see the complaint and exhibits in Padron et al. v. ICE et al.
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