What I Saw at LAX's CBP Holding Facility

In the last few weeks, I’ve conducted oversight visits to the Customs and Border Protection holding facilities at both Los Angeles and San Francisco International Airports.

The law requires the Department of Homeland Security to let me in to see the conditions of the facility and treatment of detainees, and ask questions. That’s what I did.

Here’s what I found:

CBP policy precludes holding people for more than 72 hours. I was told it’s rare to go beyond that at LAX, and it generally only happens when there is not a return flight for a detainee within that window. (Bear in mind, some of those return flights are taking lawful U.S. residents back outside the country.)

When it is necessary to detain someone more than 72 hours, they are transferred to ICE custody. On at least one occasion there wasn’t sufficient room at the ICE facility so they were held longer at LAX.

Although keeping people beyond 72 hours at LAX appears to take place less often than at SFO, the facilities at LAX are extremely dated and uncomfortable compared to SFO.

The holding area has upright airport-style chairs, a small number of recliners and a handful of cots. You would not want to be there for 72 hours.

There are showers and a separate area for families, but again, nothing but camping-style cots to sleep on.

Food is also an issue. There are shelves of snack food, and definitely not the kind of food you would want for three days. Chips, crackers, ramen — that kind of thing. Detainees can have someone purchase hot food for them if they have money with them. Otherwise they are reliant on snack food, or vouchers from airlines that are not always available.

Detainees at LAX appear to have greater access to family than at SFO, and can call them directly after intake to let family members know where they are. But, apart from very narrow circumstances, they do not have access to counsel. Even if they have an attorney they are not allowed to call them. This appears to be a CBP headquarters policy and desperately needs to change.

At both LAX and SFO, staff inquire about medical conditions during intake and there are some emergency medical personnel available either on site or in the airport. At the time I visited LAX, there were fewer than six people being held by CBP that I witnessed. I was informed they have held up to 12 at a time but that is rare. Lights can be dimmed during sleeping hours.

Of course, many of these observations are dependent on the information provided by CBP on site.

I will be following up to get documentation on length of stay and other issues, and will continue to conduct my oversight responsibilities of DHS facilities in California and call out the Trump administration’s unlawful and cruel immigration policies.