CHICAGO (AP) — Illinois advocates sued federal authorities Friday over alleged inhumane conditions at a Chicago-area immigration center.
Attorneys with the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois and the MacArthur Justice Center say U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have denied people being held at the Broadview processing center private calls with attorneys and have blocked members of Congress, religious leaders, and journalists from entering the building, creating a "black box" they say has allowed authorities to act "with impunity."
Agents have also coerced people held at the processing center to sign paperwork they don't understand, leading them to unknowingly relinquish their rights and face deportation, according to the lawsuit.
Alexa Van Brunt, director of the MacArthur Justice Center's Illinois office and lead attorney for the lawsuit, said community members are "being kidnapped off the streets, packed in hold cells, denied food, medical care, and basic necessities, and forced to sign away their legal rights."
"Everyone, no matter their legal status, has the right to access counsel and to not be subject to horrific and inhumane conditions," she said.
In a statement, Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Homeland Security, denied the assertions made in the lawsuit and said such allegations have contributed to an increase in death threats against immigration officers. She also said people are held only briefly before being transferred to detention centers.
"Any claims there are subprime conditions at the Broadview ICE facility are false. All detainees are provided with 3 meals a day, water, and have access to phones to communicate with their family members and lawyers," the statement said.
"No one is denied access to proper medical care. There is a privacy wall around the toilet for detainees."
Attorneys accuse ICE, DHS, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection of violating detainees' Fifth Amendment right to due process and Sixth Amendment right to legal counsel, and have asked the court to force the agencies to improve the lockup's conditions.
The 76-page lawsuit paints a bleak picture of the center, which attorneys say is "extremely cramped" and "smells strongly of feces, urine, and body odor," while insects were found in the sinks and clogged toilets led to urine on the floor. One man described people lying on top of each other and in the bathroom, unable to find space to sleep.
"They treated us like animals, or worse than animals, because no one treats their pets like that," one woman said in the lawsuit.
Several people said they were detained at the processing center for durations ranging from a couple of days to three weeks.
Advocates have for months raised concerns about conditions at the processing site, which has drawn scrutiny from members of Congress, political candidates and activist groups. Lawyers and relatives of people held there have called it a de facto detention center, saying up to 200 people have been held at a time without access to legal counsel.
The Broadview center has also drawn demonstrations, which have led to the arrests of numerous protesters. The protests are at the center of a separate lawsuit from a coalition of news outlets and protesters who claim federal agents violated their First Amendment rights by repeatedly using tear gas and other weapons on them.
U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis sided with the coalition earlier this month, requiring federal agents in the Chicago area to wear badges and banning them from using certain riot control techniques against peaceful protesters and journalists.
Later, Ellis also required body cameras for agents who have them after raising concerns about her initial order not being followed.
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This story has been corrected to show the lawsuit does not allege torturous conditions.
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