Inspectors working for Immigration and Customs Enforcement documented a list of problems at Delaney Hall, a for-profit detention center in Newark, New Jersey, that houses about 800 immigrants at any given time.
The report by ICE’s Office of Detention Oversight followed a September visit to Delaney Hall. The GEO Group company operates the lockup under terms of a federal contract.
The inspection found 22 deficiencies of national detention standards, almost twice as many as the 12 listed in 2025.
Issues flagged include improper medical care, failure to provide prescribed medication and delays in initial physical and mental-health screenings for new detainees.
The document also lists improper reporting of sexual abuse and assault investigations and failure to maintain cleanliness and sanitation.
ICE Inc. | Inside the companies profiting from the Trump administration's immigration agenda
For a year now, the Scripps News ICE Inc. investigation has detailed reports of troubling conditions inside Delaney Hall, including frequent calls to 911 for sick and injured persons, complaints of delayed medical care, difficulty getting medication and claims of unsanitary conditions.
"Things have not gotten better,” said Kathy O’Leary, one of the many volunteers posted outside Delaney Hall that helps families with loved ones detained inside.
O’Leary said she continues to hear from detainees unable to obtain timely medical care.
"They are going weeks before their sick calls are being responded to,” O’Leary said. “We had a man in here with a broken leg that took him a month to get the operation he needed.”
In December, a former detainee told Scripps it could take weeks to see medical staff.
“People would request an appointment and are seen about 20 days after requesting the appointment, when they’re already cured, the entire illness had already passed,” the man said.
RELATED STORY | Can Democrats deliver on a promise to rein in ICE?
Two detainees held at Delaney Hall have died in custody. Edwin Jovanny Lopez Cornejo died in August after DHS said he suffered a medical emergency inside Delaney Hall. His mother questioned whether he had received the medication he needed for diabetes, high blood pressure and seizures.
Jean Wilson Brutus died following another reported medical emergency one day after arriving at Delaney Hall in December 2025.
The GEO Group did not immediately respond to inquiries about the inspection report, which says the company is taking action to try to fix some of the problems identified in the document.
