In late March, an employee at the Houston Contract Detention Facility became the first detention center staff case reported by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Texas. However, ICE officials confirmed to the Observer they are not reporting cases of contractors who work in Texas immigration facilities who have tested positive for COVID-19 because they are employed by a third party. This means the list of infected employees who are potentially interacting with detained persons and facility staff is incomplete.
Ryan Gustin, manager of public affairs for CoreCivic, the prison company contracted to run five detention centers in Laredo, Houston, South Texas, and Williamson County, said it has “three confirmed cases of COVID-19 among our CoreCivic employees that work at the Houston Processing Center. They are recovering at home and are in regular communication with their health care providers,” Gustin told the Observer.
