ICE Opens 700-Bed Detention Facility in McFarland, California

The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activated the Central Valley Annex, a 700-bed immigrant detention facility in McFarland, California. Operated by the for-profit GEO Group, the site previously served as a state prison and has housed U.S. Marshals Service detainees. This opening increases the total number of active detention centers in California to eight.

The expansion aligns with a federal strategy under President Donald Trump to raise daily detention capacity to more than 100,000 people. This effort is supported by a $45 billion spending law intended to fuel a massive deportation campaign. ICE stated that the facility opened under an existing intergovernmental services agreement that has been in place for several years.

The California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice and other advocates condemned the move, citing a lack of public hearings and a history of medical neglect at other GEO Group facilities. GEO Group rejected these claims, describing the allegations as part of a politically motivated campaign to abolish federal immigration detention.