Report Alleges Immigrant Abuse At Boone Co. Jail

Monday, December 12, 2011 at 6:29 AM

(Burlington, Ky.) - The Boone County Jail is being subject to allegations of human rights abuses.

The National Immigrant Justice Center and the Midwest Coalition for Human Rights calls on President Barack Obama to close the jail in Burlington as well as two others: Jefferson County Jail in Mt. Vernon, Ill., and the Tri-County Detention Center in Ullin, Ill.

The three facilities are among approximately 250 nationwide which ICE contracts with to house immigrants suspected of being in the country illegally.

According to the Associated Press, the reports from the groups allege ICE detainees at the Boone County Jail experienced barriers to legal counsel.

ICE inmates at the Boone County Jail, of which 50 percent were held without having committed a crime or only a minor offense, were often intermingled with criminal detainees.

Other allegations from the report regarding the Boone County Jail:

-The jail is kept cold year-round.

-Detainees are often required to pay for medical care.

-Jail ofï¬cials are discriminatory and nonresponsive to requests for assistance.

-A detainee with a possibly-cancerous growth on his neck had requests to see a doctor denied.

-An HIV-positive inmate was not permitted to see a doctor for six weeks, although he did visit with nurses.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement told the Associated Press the Boone County Jail and the other two jails have each received passing grades during annual inspections.

The full report is available online at http://immigrantjustice.org/publications/report-not-too-late-reform.