In theory, immigration detention centers operated under the purview of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency within the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are subject to numerous federal rules intended to protect detainees from experiencing sexual abuse while incarcerated, including the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003. In practice, though, there is a long and well-documented history of detainees within ICE facilities being subjected to human rights violations in various forms, including sexual assault.
If you experienced sexual abuse in an immigration detention center, you may have grounds to demand civil restitution both from the person or people who directly abused you and from the organization(s) responsible for supervising and training your abuser(s). Phillips Law Group has spent decades helping people much like you proactively file suit under circumstances much like yours, and working with a compassionate sexual abuse lawyer from our team could dramatically improve your chances of securing a favorable case result.
Regardless of where it happens, no one who is subjected to sexual assault or abuse is ever to blame for their mistreatment in any way, and the person—or people—who engaged in sexual assault or abuse are always at fault for their own unlawful behavior. With that being said, it is not always the case that an individual officer or employee of an immigration detention center is the only person who could hold civil liability for their criminal actions, as a qualified attorney can explain in more detail.
For example, the day-to-day operation of many ICE facilities is contracted out to private companies, which may be held vicariously liable for their employees’ misconduct or even directly liable for negligent hiring and training practices. ICE itself may hold civil liability for sexual abuse inside its facilities along similar lines, as may other federal agencies, as well as the Department of Homeland Security as a whole.
No amount of money can completely erase the physical and psychological trauma of a sexual assault experience entirely on its own. What civil compensation can do, though, is minimize the negative impact that another person’s abuse will have on your life moving forward by reimbursing you for specific financial and personal losses stemming directly from that abuse.
While no two cases are exactly alike and there are fewer legal precedents for cases of this nature compared to lawsuits against other types of organizations, examples of damages which could potentially be recoverable through a sexual assault claim against an ICE detention center include:
A member of the Phillips Law Group team can discuss what losses should be considered during a particular claim during a private initial consultation.
Being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement can be a traumatic experience under any circumstances, and experiencing sexual assault while in ICE custody can be exponentially more harmful. No matter what you have been told by other people or even by the agents who detained you, though, you have rights under United States federal law as a detainee, and you can take legal action to enforce those rights if they are violated.
Phillips Law Group can provide custom-tailored and confidential legal support throughout any litigation you wish to pursue over sexual abuse in an immigration detention center. Call today to learn more.
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