Gov. Ferguson, AG Brown sue GEO Group over alleged denial of health inspections at Tacoma ICE facility
Apr 28, 2026, 7:06 PM
Washington Governor Bob Ferguson and Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown at a news conference Tuesday at the ICE Detention Facility in Tacoma. (Photo courtesy of TVW)
(Photo courtesy of TVW)
Washington Governor Bob Ferguson and Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown are suing GEO Group, the private company that runs the Northwest U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Processing Center in Tacoma.
Ferguson and Brown want a judge to order the facility to allow state health inspectors inside.
Inspectors have been turned away 10 times, despite more than 3,500 complaints alleging unsafe food, medical neglect, and unsanitary conditions at the detention center, according to Brown’s office.
Two people have died while detained at the facility since 2024, and six more have attempted suicide, according to a news release.
“Enough is enough,” Brown said at a news conference Tuesday. “People are being harmed in this facility. And inaction is no longer acceptable.”
Ferguson struck a similar tone, saying the state has the legal backing to act.
“The law is clear: We have the legal authority to inspect private detention centers in our state,” he said. “GEO Group has continued to obstruct our efforts to conduct these critical health inspections. That is unacceptable. We’ve beaten GEO in court before, and we’ll beat them again.”
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Detainees report unsafe water, unsanitary conditions at ICE facility
According to Brown’s office, one detainee said, “The water tastes disgusting, it does not taste like normal water you usually drink, which makes sense because all the staff here bring in their own water bottles because they know the water here is not safe to drink.”
Another recent complaint said there were only two working bathrooms for approximately 100 people. Some detainees have said GEO Group denies them clean, dry clothes. There are also reports that sheets are not washed, even after someone with diseases like COVID-19 or chickenpox has slept in them, according to the release.
“GEO Group is not above the law: they must allow health inspectors to inspect the Tacoma facility,” Brown said. “Washington law helps bring accountability and transparency to otherwise opaque private detention facilities. The fact that GEO Group resists basic health and safety inspections and refuses to follow the law should trouble all Washingtonians.”
GEO Group referred questions to ICE.
KIRO Newsradio has reached out to ICE for comment.
Frank Lenzi is the News Director for KIRO Newsradio. Read more of his stories here.
