Thread by @WitnessBorder

Some details on the @ICEgov hotel detention in McAllen, El Paso, and Arizona. @TXCivilRights discovered children held at Hampton Inn in McAllen. Quoted from Flores report: ICE utilizes contracts with MVM, Inc. (MVM) through Juvenile & Family Residential Management Unit... 1/10

... (JFRMU) to transport & temporarily house unaccompanied minors & family units pending removal under Title 42. This program is an extension of regular transportation services for aliens between custodial settings instituted in 2014.2/10

Initially, the program required only brief stays in hotels prior to deportation flights & prolonged stays in temporary housing were rare occurrences before the implementation of the Title 42 expulsion protocols. However, since implementation of the @CBP-issued expulsion...3/10

...protocols, unaccompanied minors & families routinely spend multiple days temporarily housed in hotels. The program regularly uses 3 hotels in McAllen & TX, & AZ, but temporary housing in additional locations can be utilized when necessary.
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Once in temporary facilities, contracted “Transportation Specialists” (Specialists) provide oversight of minors & families. Specifications for Specialist position includes possession of an associate’s degree or high school diploma & at least 1 yr of relevant work experience.5/10

All Specialists are required to undergo a background check & training including specific training on COVID-19 precautions & protocols.
Protocols require Specialists work in 3 rotating shifts so that each minor is accompanied by at least 1 Specialist at all times.6/10

The protocols also require unaccompanied minors to be within the line of sight of a Specialist at all times. Minors are separated into rooms by age & gender. Same-gender siblings may reside in adjoining rooms with the connecting door open.7/10

Cross-gender siblings may also reside in adjoining rooms, but the connecting door must remain closed at night. ICE reserves empty rooms on either side of any room in which detainees are held to create a perimeter that ensures minimal interaction with public hotel guests.8/10

Specialists & all other MVM staff members are required to be dressed in non-identifying, business casual clothing.
Children & families are not usually taken outside during their time in hotels. Younger children may sometimes play in enclosed pool areas for short supervised...9/10

... periods, but generally, residents have little to no access to recreation. Minors in temporary housing also lack access to education & therapy/counseling. Visitation is not permitted #WitnessAtTheBorder #DontLookAway #FreeThemAll #McAllen 10/10