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Judith Castellanos, the wife of Cuban migrant Marlon Cervelo Trujillo speaks during a press conference in front of the Federal Detention Center (FDC) in Downtown Miami where he’s being detained, to ask for him to be released, on Wednesday July 15, 2026.<\/p>\n
Pedro Portal<\/p>\n
pportal@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n
Amid mounting reports of worsening conditions within downtown Miami\u2019s Federal Detention Center, a Bureau of Prisons facility being used to house some immigration detainees, Florida advocacy groups are building a case for federal intervention by collecting firsthand accounts from detainees.<\/p>\n
Arianne Betancourt, an acitivist with the Worker\u2019s Circle, a Jewish social justice organization, said the group has documented evidence of at least 80 instances of alleged mistreatment inside FDC Miami.<\/p>\n
The accounts \u2014 mostly coming from relatives or detainees\u2019 themselves \u2014 describe limited access to drinking water, inadequate medical treatment, unsanitary living spaces, extreme heat and cells holding more people than they were designed to accommodate inside the detention center.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re working directly with families of the detained and the detainees to document the abuses,\u201d Betancourt said. \u201cWe make sure that everybody else knows what we know.\u201d<\/p>\n
The allegations were the focus of a news conference Wednesday outside FDC Miami, where relatives joined immigrant-rights advocates demanding transparency and oversight.<\/p>\n
A Bureau of Prisons spokesperson told the Miami Herald that the agency would not comment on \u201canecdotal accusations\u201d and that issues with air conditioning and water pressure had been quickly resolved when they emerged earlier this month.<\/p>\n
To collect data, Betancourt said the Worker\u2019s Circle gathers information through calls with immigrant detainees and their families. She said they send details of those accounts to government representatives, including Broward\u2019s U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz.<\/p>\n
The group then sends the cases to local immigration attorneys and elected officials, including Wasserman Schultz, for them to visit detention centers unannounced.<\/p>\n
The U.S. representatives conducted a similar visit earlier this month to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Miramar. Wasserman Schultz said the people held inside looked \u201cshriveled and miserable.\u201d<\/p>\n
READ MORE: \u2018Horrific\u2019: Lawmaker denounces conditions at Miramar ICE office as detentions ramp up<\/a><\/p>\n Anthony Bryant, speaking on behalf of Wasserman Schultz, said the congresswoman supported an independent investigation into both the conditions and allegations.<\/p>\n \u201cRetaliation against detainees who report abuse has no place in a nation committed to the rule of law and basic human dignity,\u201d Bryant said. \u201cEvery person in government custody retains fundamental rights, including the right to be treated humanely.\u201d<\/p>\n The Workers Circle is part of a broader coalition pressing for scrutiny of FDC Miami. Representatives from the Florida Immigrant Coalition, American Friends Service Committee and Family Action Network joined Wednesday\u2019s event, where advocates called for unannounced inspections and protections for people who report mistreatment.<\/p>\n The news conference and accusations come directly after reports that Alligator Alcatraz, a detention center in the Florida Everglades, has closed.<\/p>\n Advocates say that with the closure, more immigrant detainees are being transferred to FDC Miami, exacerbating the already questionable conditions.<\/p>\n Alexandra Orellana, a South Florida organizer for the Florida Immigrant Coalition, said advocates are trying to prevent federal detention facilities from operating without meaningful public scrutiny.<\/p>\n \u201cWe cannot allow detention centers to operate in secrecy,\u201d she said. \u201cWe cannot allow people to be transferred from facility to facility where their families struggle to find them or to find them the necessary medical care.\u201d<\/p>\n Yareliz Mendez-Zamora, a policy coordinator for the American Friends Service Committee, said complaints emerging from FDC Miami shouldn\u2019t be treated as isolated allegations, pointing to similar complaints elsewhere in the state.<\/p>\n \u201cThese families are right to be terrified,\u201d Mendez-Zamora said. \u201cThis is not an unfounded fear.\u201d<\/p>\n Beyond documenting individual cases, the organizations are attempting to identify patterns across detention sites. Betancourt said reports from FDC Miami resemble complaints advocates have received from the Miramar field office and other facilities.<\/p>\n \u201cAnytime we get a report about another inhumane and cruel action in one of these detention centers, we make sure that everybody else knows what we know,\u201d Betancourt said.<\/p>\n This story was originally published July 15, 2026 at 6:14 PM.<\/p>\n
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