Judge says ICE can't hold detainees at NYC facility unless it improves conditions and gives them sleeping mats [View all]

Source: CBS News

Updated on: August 12, 2025 / 6:43 PM EDT


A federal judge on Tuesday said he would block the Trump administration from using a federal building in New York City to hold immigrants facing deportation unless it reduces the number of detainees and improves conditions at the site, including by providing sleeping mats and hygiene products.

U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan issued the temporary restraining order after holding a hearing earlier Tuesday. A government lawyer conceded in court that those detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, at the Manhattan facility did not have access to certain services, including sleeping mats, in-person legal visits, medication and more than two meals per day.

The holding facility in question, located inside the 26 Federal Plaza building in downtown Manhattan, has been at the center of widespread criticism from pro-immigrant advocates, who have denounced conditions faced by detainees there as "inhumane." Video released last month showed detainees at the facility lying on the ground, without mats or beds. ICE has said the site has fewer services because it is not designed for long-term detention, though government data indicates some detainees have been held for days there.

Last week, the American Civil Liberties Union and other advocates filed a lawsuit against ICE over the 26 Federal Plaza holding facility, alleging that detainees there were being held in unsafe and unsanitary conditions, without access to basic necessities, including hygiene products. The advocates said detainees only received two "inedible" meals daily and were denied access to unrestricted calls with lawyers.

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/26-federal-plaza-nyc-ice-conditions-temporary-restraining-order-trump/