Virginia's immigrant detention centers near highest capacity since 2020
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The two federal immigrant detention centers in Virginia are the closest to capacity that they've been since 2020, according to newly released data.
The big picture: The data sheds light on how the U.S. government's immigration centers are running out of space as the Trump administration pushes for dramatically more arrests of undocumented immigrants.
- It also shows that Virginia remains the mid-Atlantic hub for ICE detention, per an Axios review of data collected by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC).
- The closest detention centers with more people detained are in Georgia and Pennsylvania.
Zoom in: The state's ICE facilities are in Caroline County and Farmville, both about an hour from Richmond.
- The centers combined have 1,068 beds.
- Even if they were full, they couldn't accommodate the estimated 275,000 undocumented immigrants in Virginia.
By the numbers: Caroline County is at 80% capacity, per TRAC's report — the highest recorded in five years.
- Farmville's center, the larger of the two, is less full (61%). Its population has more than doubled since last February, though its capacity is still lower than it was in 2020 (72%).
Flashback: Farmville's facility became national news in 2020 when nearly 97% of the people detained there got COVID after some arrived from detention centers in other states.
- That led to a lawsuit that wasn't settled until 2022.
- The agreement, which expired in 2023, stated Farmville's ICE facility couldn't have more than 25% capacity or accept transfers unless they were vaccinated or had tested negative for COVID.
- That explains, in part, why the facility was far below capacity from February 2021 to February 2024.
How it works: Immigrants can end up in ICE detention after being arrested by ICE or the U.S. Border Patrol.
- Immigrants also can end up in detention after being arrested on criminal charges and released into ICE custody.
What we're watching: ICE currently has the capacity to hold about 42,000 people nationwide. The agency is holding 41,169 as of its Feb. 8 update.
- Nearly 55% of those people have no criminal record, and many more have committed minor offenses such as traffic violations, TRAC found.
- To hold more people from a surge in raids would require a mass building project of "soft detention" centers, or temporary facilities.
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