Constantine Cannon continues its commitment to ending abuses in private detention facilities
This week, Constantine Cannon is proud to continue its representation as pro bono counsel to Immigrant Legal Resource Center, Human Rights Watch, and Freedom for Immigrants in supporting California’s efforts to end the use of private immigration detention facilities in the state. Last spring, we filed a “friend of the court” brief for these same organizations in the district court in opposition to the Geo Group’s efforts to stop the law from taking effect. The district court agreed and denied Geo Group’s preliminary injunction motion. That case is now on appeal in the Ninth Circuit, and we have filed a new brief reiterating our support for California’s right to shut down these facilities.
In the year in between our briefs, the coronavirus pandemic exploded and has come to dominate the concerns for the health, safety, and welfare of immigrants detained within these facilities. The pandemic has exacerbated the need to end the inadequate medical care in these facilities and to protect those detained within their walls.
Private prison companies sign contracts with the government promising to provide a constitutional and legal level of care for those detained inside. The stories in the brief we just filed show that these companies are not meeting their obligations to do so. In some cases, these failures may rise to the level of a False Claims Act violation. In all cases, these failures are horrific and dangerous.
The full press release about the brief is here. You can read our full brief here.
Read More:
- 2020 Whistleblower of the Year Candidate – Dawn Wooten
- Constantine Cannon Files Amicus Brief in Support of California’s Effort to Curb Private Prison Company Abuses
- Immigration Detention Facilities Continue to Pose Fraud Risks
- Reforming Private Prisons from the Inside
- The Big Business of Detaining Families Creates a Serious Fraud Risk
- Our Other Posts on Private Prisons
Tagged in: Correctional Services Fraud, Government Procurement Fraud, Human Rights,