Thread: Illegals Get Cozy Lockup In McHenry

Illegals get cozy lockup in McHenry

June 10, 2007

BY ESTHER J. CEPEDA Staff Reporter

It's not the Hilton, but the McHenry County Detention Center, in sleepy Woodstock isn't an inhumane holding pen for the 200 illegal immigrants awaiting deportation.

An uproar began in March after McHenry officials painted tracking numbers on the hands of people arrested in a South Bend, Ind., plastics factory raid, bringing complaints of civil rights violations.

McHenry officials said they used the markers to more quickly process detainees' belongings, and after complaints they agreed to stop the practice.

Two days later, family members of several people who had been detained in a February raid at a packaging factory in Arlington Heights rallied outside U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) offices in downtown Chicago alleging that their family members had also been mistreated.

Stories ranged from complaints that water, food, and medicine were withheld and that detainees had been restricted from communicating with their families to allegations that some weren't allowed to bathe.

According to Gerardo Medrano, his wife, Maria de Carmen Santana, 47, had been suffering with tendinitis in her leg and was denied over-the-counter pain reliever. "She's just there in pain," said Medrano, who had been among protesters.

The jail would not allow interviews with current detainees.

A recent Sun-Times visit, however, found a state-of-the-art facility staffed by a host of multilingual enforcement officers trained to maintain standards of living even higher than those required by the federal government.

Liaison available
Sparkling clean facilities stocked with bilingual medical forms and informational materials are given to new detainees who can ask for assistance in Spanish, Chinese and Polish or request a phone translator.

Detainees, on floors separated from violent criminals, reside in large common areas called "pods" where a ubiquitous television hums as detainees read the paper, play board games or work on learning more about their legal options on a computer loaded with law databases. They have access to shower stalls, water fountains and bathrooms and get three nutritionally balanced meals -- a minimum of two hot -- per day.

ICE Deportation Officer Cruz, a Hispanic detainee liaison, is constantly available to answer questions about specific cases.

"I'm available in person and by phone, fax, and by request," Cruz said. "I mostly help with processing people's travel documents, usually they're just ready to go home and want to know how quickly I can make that happen."

In Cruz's absence, detainees can call any number of consulates and immigrant advocacy groups for help during anytime they're not on lockdown for check-in purposes. Video conferencing gives them immediate access to their court appointments or interviews with representatives of their home country's consulate.

Three months later, even the Mexican Consulate felt comfortable that, aside from the hand-marking incident, McHenry County officials were treating their detainees with the dignity and order required by a joint national agreement.

'The place to be'
"Of the 500 people in process of deportation in the last year, we've helped about 100 people who were detained in raids," said Rita Vargas, a spokeswoman for the Chicago office of the Mexican Consulate. "We've had no more reports of water or food being denied," she said and added, "many times these misunderstandings come from a language issue."

Enforcement officer Dave Butler says having a layout where officers are constantly among detainees helps them develop a rapport and allows them to spot detainees who are struggling.

"When they first arrive there's a bit of confusion, but once they get here and see we treat them kindly they're OK," said Butler. "No one's happy to be here, but they quickly see that if you have to get locked up, this is the place to be."

Tom Swoboda, McHenry County Detention Center chief of corrections, oversees an average of 220 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees in the 650-bed facility.

"I insist these people are treated with the utmost dignity and respect," he said.

IMMIGRANTS SHOW CULINARY CREATIVITY

McHenry County Jail provides the following amenities to ensure their stay is not only humane but pleasant and productive:

• Multi-language translators, medical and mental health personnel, and guards

• Multi-language forms and documents for medical intake, information request and complaint forms

• Video-conferencing hook-up to consulates in various countries for face-to-face counseling and for in-state long-distance court hearings

• Free phone access, with speed dial, to international consulates and pro-bono attorney services organizations

• Access to a computer database of legal information

• Fax availability for legal correspondence

• Visits from advocacy groups and video presentations of the detention and deportation process in multiple languages

• Always-accessible bathrooms, showers, water fountains, video-phone and telephones

Friends and family can purchase items for detainees from the jail commissary at an on-site ATM or on the Web.

Offerings include flour tortillas, Flamin' Hot Cheetos or Hot Fritos, Jalapeno Chips, Spanish/English dictionaries and Spanish language birthday and friendship cards.

John Falk, a correctional officer, says he marvels at the creativity detainees show in adapting commissary snacks into ethnic comfort food. "They mash up Flamin' Hot Cheetos or Fritos with warm water and make a tortilla out of it. They'll make desserts out of honeybuns and marshmallows."





© Copyright 2007 Sun-Times News Group | Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/4213 ... 10.article

"Three months later, even the Mexican Consulate felt comfortable that, aside from the hand-marking incident, McHenry County officials were treating their detainees with the dignity and order required by a joint national agreement. "

Hey, anything for the Mexican Consulate. I'm really glad they approve of the way we are coddling their citizens who have broken our laws.

They have tattoos all over their faces and necks and yet they cry over a sharpie mark on their hands. Unbelievable.

The Mejican Consulate approves this post.