ICE Eyes Shuttered, Hazardous FCI Dublin for Immigrant Detention Use

Federal authorities appear to be preparing for renewed use of the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, a women’s prison closed earlier this year due to unsafe conditions and a history of abuse. A public request issued in August 2024 by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) seeks detention space within two hours of ICE field offices, including San Francisco. Activists say all indicators point to FCI Dublin as a target.

FCI Dublin, located about 40 miles east of San Francisco, was formally closed in April after widespread reports of sexual violence, toxic environments, and infrastructural decay. Whistleblower complaints, civil suits, and an investigation by the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) revealed longstanding rape, harassment, and environmental hazards. Conditions included exposed asbestos, mold, sewage leaks, and blackened walls from water damage. Its notoriety earned it the nickname “rape club” among staff and inmates alike.

Despite the scope of the problems, ICE has shown increasing interest in using decommissioned or underutilized federal prisons for immigrant detention. In recent years, other federal facilities including FCI Miami, FCI Atlanta, and FCI Philadelphia have entered into contracts with DHS to house immigration detainees. A 2022 memorandum of understanding between ICE and the BOP emphasizes increased cooperation between the agencies.

Staff at FCI Dublin report that in early 2024, crews began dismantling parts of the prison. The workers were not identified as BOP employees. According to internal sources, the disturbance of tile and walls likely released additional asbestos from the building. Removed furniture and equipment, they said, were then shipped to other prisons, possibly spreading contamination further.

Environmental surveys confirmed major hazards. Two separate inspections in March 2024 by Titan Environmental Solutions found mold and asbestos throughout housing units A, B, and C. Mold appeared in staff offices, common corridors, restrooms, showers, the kitchen, and even the medical unit. A Department of Justice official later testified that safe reopening would require tens of millions in repairs.

Concerns are growing that if ICE restarts operations at Dublin, the facility will be outsourced to private contractors. In California, all six active ICE detention sites are already run by for-profit companies. Reports from the ACLU and others show a consistent stream of human rights complaints from detained immigrants: 485 abuse claims have been filed since 2023 alone, many detailing medical neglect, unsafe conditions, or retaliation for protest.

One former detainee, José Rubén Hernández Gomez, spent over a year in ICE custody and went on a hunger strike in protest of conditions at the Golden State Annex. He and others reported hazardous environments and extended isolation. Hernández Gomez now walks with a cane and is suing the facility’s private operator, GEO Group, backed by the California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice (CCIJ).

CCIJ and other advocacy groups argue there is a pattern: as public scrutiny grows, ICE avoids building new jails by converting federal prisons with troubled histories. One attorney described the process as a workaround. “Once you place a detainee in a federal prison, ICE no longer must meet standards specific to immigration detention,” the lawyer said.

Political leaders have also voiced concern. U.S. Representatives Mark DeSaulnier and Zoe Lofgren cited the agency’s own findings in a February 2025 letter to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. “By BOP’s own admittance, FCI Dublin simply is not safe for habitation,” they wrote.

The local population has responded with protests and public pressure campaigns. On March 1, roughly 500 people gathered outside the closed prison gates, holding signs and calling for a permanent ban on detention there. The San Francisco Interfaith Council later released a formal statement opposing the site’s return to use.

This would not be ICE’s first such arrangement. In 2018, the agency began detaining hundreds at Victorville Federal Prison in Southern California. That move drew objections from BOP staff who warned of inadequate training, understaffing, and logistical failures. Similar objections are emerging again as news circulates about FCI Dublin.

Internal opposition is also building. One whistleblower testified in court that routine floor buffing released asbestos into the air and led to chronic sinus infections among staff. Another reported mold infiltration in multiple units and faced threats after using a home kit to test air quality. These testimonies were major contributors to the court ruling that forced the prison’s closure earlier this year.

For now, FCI Dublin remains formally out of use. But in the absence of a public contract, activists and legal scholars warn that quiet preparation is already underway. According to advocates, the public should not view ICE’s interest in Dublin as hypothetical. Community groups continue to organize responses, with legal actions anticipated should ICE move forward with detention operations at the site.

The future of FCI Dublin remains uncertain, but the broader fight over who gets detained, where, and under what conditions is far from over. As agencies weigh the site’s potential, they face mounting legal, environmental, and political obstacles.