U.S. Senator Alex Padilla denied entry to Otay Mesa Detention Center

On Friday, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) was denied entry to Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego on his attempt to exercise his Congressional oversight role amid reports of inhumane conditions inside the facility.

Padilla, who is a ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, tried to conduct a critical oversight visit into the private CoreCivic facility and meeting with local ICE leadership amid President Trump’s mass detention and deportation campaign. 

The warden also refused to meet with Padilla who did not give advanced notice to the facility prior to his oversight visit.

“If individuals at Otay Mesa are actually ‘well taken care of,’ as Secretary Noem claims, then what does this Administration have to hide?” Padilla said at a press conference outside of the detention center. “Detained individuals are throwing handwritten notes over the walls and fences to get the word out about their conditions: a severe lack of healthy food, large holding rooms without doors or even windows, constant sickness, and wholly inadequate medical care.”

Padilla said the overwhelming majority of detainees have no criminal record and deserve respect and decency, with basic standards for accessing health care, food, and legal counsel. 

Overcrowded center

Data shows that the Otay Mesa detention center was at least 100 people over capacity between Oct. 1 and Nov. 10, 2025. The facility held an average of 1,456 people in ICE custody, exceeding CoreCivic’s contractual capacity of 1,358. ICE refused to provide even basic information without approval from ICE headquarters, including how many people are being detained.

Padilla’s office said in a statement that he was denied entry into the Otay Mesa Detention Center as the number of immigrants detained by the agency has swelled to over 66,500, after reaching 73,000 earlier this year — more than ever before in U.S. history. 

“After 32 people died in ICE custody in 2025, the deadliest year since 2005, at least eight individuals have already died in their custody this year,” the press release states. 

The Otay Mesa facility operates under less stringent and protective standards and still has not been inspected by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Inspector General since 2021. At the time, the DHS Inspector General found that Otay Mesa did not meet standards for grievances, segregation, or staff-detainee communications.

On Feb. 9, San Diego County’s public health officer announced the county’s intent to investigate potential violations at the private facility, sending a letter to the facility’s senior warden “assert[ing] the county’s authority to examine health and safety conditions inside the privately operated immigration detention facility.” 

The county officials were also denied entry on Friday. Representative Juan Vargas (D-Calif.-52) previously tried to gain access to Otay Mesa, which is in his district, to inspect the facility, but was denied entry.

“The American people deserve better than Trump’s out-of-control ICE and CBP [Customs and Border Protection] and I will keep fighting and keep fulfilling my responsibility as a United States Senator to provide oversight until they get it,” Padilla said.