How the Otay Mesa Detention Center became a COVID hotspot | Kate Morrissey

Immigration and Customs Enforcement over the past week has released 65 more detainees from Otay Mesa Detention Center who are medically vulnerable to COVID-19, a government attorney said during a court hearing Friday.There are still more inside. Under court order in a lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union, ICE identified a list of 131 people total in its custody at the facility who are medically vulnerable.The agency had released two detainees by its first check-in with U.S. District Court Judge Dana Sabraw on Monday. Sabraw had ordered ICE to review cases at the facility — which has the biggest outbreak in San Diego County as well as in immigration detention nationwide — and release as many of the medical vulnerable as possible.Some of those who haven’t yet been released are waiting for medical clearance because they either have already tested positive for the novel coronavirus or they are waiting for results. Two still need sponsors to live with in order to be released.Read more: