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Jayapal alleges lack of oversight after ICE center visit
She said that she was disallowed from interacting with detainees despite giving eight days’ notice of her visit.
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Jeffin T. Kaleekal - Fri, 20, Feb 2026
- 02:58 EST
- 12
Pramila Jayapal / image provided
Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal said she would “fight like hell” to secure real oversight and end what she described as abusive behavior after facing significant hurdles during a visit to the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, Washington.
Jayapal alleged that she was denied the ability to meet with detained people on the general population floor or even with those for whom she had obtained privacy release forms, despite having given eight days’ notice of her visit.
After hours of waiting and being taken on what she described as a “tour” that yielded few answers, she said she refused to leave until she was allowed to meet one of the individuals for whom she had a privacy waiver and whose attorney was present.
ALSO READ: Jayapal seeks ICE review for detained amputee
She said she was eventually permitted to speak with him, but only through public visitation rather than in a private attorney room, as she has done in the past as a Member of Congress.
Jayapal reported that the individual she managed to talk to is the sole caregiver for his 8-year-old U.S. citizen daughter and has serious medical issues. He has been hospitalized in the emergency room three times since being detained on Jan. 11 and continues to experience unresolved pain and medical problems.
She also said she spoke with multiple attorneys representing detainees at the center. According to Jayapal, attorneys often wait four or five hours to see their clients, there are only seven attorney rooms for a population of about 1,300 detainees, and lawyers are sometimes kept waiting even when rooms are empty. She added that she heard numerous complaints of inadequate medical treatment, overcrowding, and inedible food.
Airing further concerns, Jayapal said she was outraged that DHS continues to block her and other Members of Congress from speaking with detained people and conducting what she called meaningful oversight. She alleged that the department and private contractors “have a lot to hide” as they incarcerate around 70,000 people every night.
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