Suit filed against ICE’s Camp East Montana operations over alleged “inhumane” conditions
UPDATE (4:11 PM) -- A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has responded to KVIA, providing the following responses to the allegations that the lawsuit brought by ACLU and others filed on the operation of Camp East Montana.
On accusations of no access to medical care:
“No one is denied access to medical care.
"It is a longstanding practice to provide comprehensive medical care from the moment an alien enters ICE custody. This includes medical, dental, and mental health intake screening within 12 hours of arriving at each detention facility, a full health assessment within 14 days of entering ICE custody or arrival at a facility, and access to medical appointments and 24-hour emergency care. This is the best healthcare many aliens have received in their entire lives. Meals are certified by dietitians. Ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority at ICE.”
On accusations of spoiled food:
“All detainees are provided with 3 meals a day, clean water, clothing, bedding, showers, soap, and toiletries. Illegal aliens also have access to phones to communicate with their family members and lawyers. Certified dietitians evaluate meals.”
On accusations of exposing detainees to measles, tuberculosis, and other diseases:
“As of March 12, there are no active measles cases at the Camp East Montana detention facility in El Paso, Texas.”
“Previously, on March 3, 2026, the Texas Department of Health confirmed active measles infections of 14 detainees at Camp East Montana in Texas. ICE Health Services Corps immediately took steps to quarantine and control further spread and infection, ceasing all movement within the facility and quarantining all individuals suspected of making contact with the infected.
“In-person visitation was suspended to protect the health and safety of the detainees, the staff, and the community. Detainees still had access to attorneys and visitation through Visual Attorney Visitation booths, tablets, or telephones.
“Medical staff monitored the detainees’ conditions and took appropriate and active steps to prevent further infection. All detainees were provided with proper medical care.”
On accusations of no oversight:
“ICE is regularly audited and inspected by external agencies to ensure that all ICE facilities comply with performance-based national detention standards. All detainees are provided with proper meals, quality water, blankets, medical treatment, and have opportunities to communicate with their family members and lawyers. ICE has higher detention standards than most U.S. prisons that hold actual U.S. citizens.”
On deaths:
“There has been NO spike in deaths in ICE custody. Consistent with data over the last decade, death rates in custody under the Trump administration are 0.009% of the detained population. As bed space has rapidly expanded, we have maintained higher a standard of care than most prisons that hold U.S. citizens—including providing access to proper medical care.
"ICE takes seriously the health and safety of all those detained in our custody.”
On allegations of physical abuse by guards:
“These claims that there are ‘inhumane’ conditions at Camp East Montana are categorically false. No detainees are being beaten or abused.”
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- In a news release from the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas (ACLU of Texas), the entity as well as four others sued Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Friday night over alleged inhumane conditions at Camp East Montana.
According to the ACLU of Texas, the lawsuit and motion for class certification were filed on the behalf of four people detained at Camp East Montana.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, the ACLU, Texas Civil Rights Project, Human Rights Watch, and the law firm Farella Braun + Martel LLP are the several entities that documented in their filing accounts of alleged rights violations, including:
- Severe medical neglect and disease outbreaks, including a months-long measles outbreak that infected at least 14 people.
- Violent uses of force by officers against detained immigrants and coercive threats of deportation.
- Excessive use of solitary confinement to punish people for requesting basic needs like medical care or hygiene.
- Inadequate and rancid food that have caused detained people to lose extreme amounts of weight.
- Exposure to dust storms through openings in tent walls that subjects people to respiratory disease.
- Dangerous and unsanitary living conditions in the tent camp, among other rights violations.
The suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas and asks the court to find the conditions at Camp East Montana violate detained people's Fifth Amendment right to due process and the Administrative Procedure Act.
One of the named plaintiffs, Gerald Akari Angye, in the suit said the following in a hand written statement:
“The conditions here in this ICE tent camp in a desert are inhumane and cruel. No human being should ever have to go through this. I have already experienced torture in my home country of Cameroon and I never thought I would experience such severely violent treatment by guards here in the United States of America. I have been beaten here and even today, I still have a brace on my hands and wrist. I am in pain and I am scared to be here. No one deserves such cruel treatment. We are all humans and deserve to be treated like it.”
According to the lawsuit, it seeks for the federal court to prevent ICE from continuing to operate the facility while it remains out of compliance with federal detention standards, stating that the government’s decision to keep the facility operating despite inspection findings was unlawful under the Fifth Amendment.
ABC-7 has reached out to DHS for a statement regarding the lawsuit.
This is a developing story and once more information is provided, we will update you on air and online.
Below is the 78 page lawsuit that the ACLU and the other entities have brought against ICE regarding Camp East Montana:
