JC Fellow Lee Ann Felder-Heim Supports Hunger Strikers in Central Valley Immigration Detention Facilities Who Filed Class Action Lawsuit Against ICE, GEO Group for Illegal Retaliation
SAN FRANCISCO – Five people detained at the Mesa Verde ICE Processing Center in Bakersfield, Calif., and the Golden State Annex in McFarland, Calif., have filed a class action lawsuit against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and GEO Group, the private, for-profit prison company that owns and operates the detention centers. They allege that they and other detained people have faced retaliation, including threats of solitary confinement and bans on family visitation, for engaging in a collective hunger strike to demand their release from immigration custody and the shutdown of both facilities.
Justice Catalyst Fellow Lee Ann Felder-Heim Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area has played an active role in this lawsuit, helping the legal team and serving as liaison for the legal team with the broader coalition and detained organizers.
Read the full press release and NPR article to learn about the lawsuit and hunger strike.
Featured Fellow