ACLU Accuses ICE of Systemic Abuse and Torture at Fort Bliss Immigration Facility
The American Civil Liberties Union has levelled explosive allegations against Immigration and Customs Enforcement, accusing the agency of perpetrating what it describes as horrific acts of intimate torture, sexual abuse, and brutal violence against men detained at one of America's largest immigration detention facilities.
Detailed Allegations of Physical and Sexual Violence
In a comprehensive letter and accompanying declarations submitted to ICE, the ACLU presents disturbing accounts from men detained at the Fort Bliss immigration detention facility in El Paso, Texas. The organisation alleges detainees have reported being systematically beaten, sexually assaulted, denied essential medical care, and intimidated into accepting self-deportation.
The allegations stem from interviews with more than forty-five individuals currently held at the facility, supported by sixteen signed declarations detailing specific abuses by officers. Among the most troubling cases cited is that of Geraldo Lunas Campos, who spent months detained at Camp East Montana in El Paso before dying in ICE custody. His death has been officially ruled a homicide following reports that an officer choked him during an altercation.
Pattern of Brutality and Systemic Failures
Another detainee, Francisco Gaspar Andres, a Guatemalan immigrant, died on December 3, 2025, from liver and kidney failure after allegedly failing to receive appropriate medical care at Fort Bliss. The ACLU insists these are not isolated incidents but rather point to systemic failures and unchecked violence throughout the facility.
Among the most disturbing allegations is the account of a detained teenager identified by the pseudonym Samuel, who told investigators he was beaten so severely by officers that he required hospitalisation. Samuel reported that one officer grabbed and firmly crushed his testicles while another forced fingers deep into his ears. During the assault, his right front tooth was broken, and weeks later, damage to his left ear left him with lasting hearing problems.
Widespread Reports of Intimate Torture
According to the ACLU, other detained men including individuals identified as Ignacio, Abel, Benjamin, and Eduardo described officers crushing their testicles during beatings, sometimes while they were already restrained or after they refused to accept forced removal to Mexico. The organisation wrote that these acts of violence reflect a pattern of brutality that violates even ICE's minimal standards.
ICE began detaining people at Fort Bliss approximately three months ago while the site remained an active construction zone. The facility, built on a former Japanese internment camp site, now holds roughly three thousand people and is approaching its planned maximum capacity. Immigrants are housed in tent structures enduring extreme El Paso heat, a setup the ACLU says marks a dangerous new phase of immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump's second term.
Dire Living Conditions and Medical Neglect
With a reported $1.2 billion price tag, Fort Bliss represents the administration's first immigration detention facility on a military base, but likely not the last. According to detainees, conditions inside Fort Bliss are dire. Each pod holds sixty to seventy people, but meals are reportedly sufficient for only about fifty. Consequently, detainees say they are forced to ration food, skip meals, or rotate who eats. When food is available, it is often spoiled or partially frozen, leading to vomiting, diarrhoea, and rapid weight loss.
Basic hygiene supplies are scarce. Detainees report receiving only a few rolls of toilet paper per pod, going days without soap, and lacking access to clean clothing or functioning showers. Flooded tents and bathrooms filled with water mixed with urine and faeces have created what the ACLU describes as squalid and unsafe living conditions.
Systematic Medical Care Failures
Medical care is described as equally alarming. Josefina, who has diabetes, told investigators she receives insulin at irregular intervals, causing dangerous spikes and crashes in her blood sugar. Fernando reported going fifteen days without his prescribed blood pressure medication. Ignacio, who previously suffered a stroke, reported blurry vision and other warning signs while officers allegedly failed to provide timely care.
Detainees consistently told investigators that medical requests are ignored for days and that people often receive attention only after fainting or collapsing. Access to legal representation is also severely limited according to the ACLU. When Fort Bliss opened, legal visitation relied almost entirely on tablets, offering little privacy for confidential legal calls. While protocols have since been adjusted, legal service providers are now reportedly allowed to meet with only ten detainees per day, an unworkable limit for a population of roughly three thousand.
Limited Oversight and Congressional Access
Many detainees lack working PINs to contact attorneys, and the facility's law library reportedly contains no legal materials. The ACLU argues ICE has actively limited oversight of the facility, even though members of Congress have authority to conduct announced or unannounced visits. According to the organisation, ICE requires seven days' notice for congressional visits and routinely denies access to Fort Bliss. During the recent government shutdown, ICE classified its congressional relations staff as non-essential, further cutting off information channels.
The ACLU warns that Fort Bliss is not an anomaly but a preview of what lies ahead as new detention sites open nationwide. Reports indicate ICE is already scouting additional military bases, including Fort Dix in New Jersey and a Coast Guard base in New York. The organisation stated that what is being witnessed at Fort Bliss is not an accident but the predictable result of reckless expansion, minimal safeguards, and virtually no oversight.
