On Oct. 4, 2017, a minor in immigration detention filed this lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia. Represented by the Washington Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs as well as private counsel, plaintiff sued the Shenandoah Valley Juvenile Center Commission, the owner and operator of his detention facility. Plaintiff brought the suit under the federal civil rights statute 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiff also sought class action certification for all similarly situated minors who were or would be detained at the same facility.
Plaintiff alleged that he was a 17-year-old Mexican unaccompanied minor, detained at the Shenandoah Valley Juvenile Center (SVJC) in Staunton, VA, for the sole reason that he had entered the U.S. without authorization. Plaintiff had suffered from domestic abuse and other violence in Mexico, and had fled to the U.S. to seek asylum. However, his prolonged detention at various U.S. facilities had exacerbated his trauma.
Plaintiff alleged that he and other juvenile immigrant detainees at the SVJC were "subjected to unconstitutional conditions that shock the conscience, including violence by staff, abusive and excessive use of seclusion and restraints, and the denial of necessary mental health care." Additionally, plaintiff alleged that SVJC staff treated the Latino immigrant detainees (who were held for civil immigration offenses) more harshly than the mostly white, non-immigrant detainees (who were held for criminal offenses).
Defendant had violated the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, plaintiff asserted, by using excessive force against and displaying deliberate indifference to civil detainees, as well as discriminating against immigrant detainees based on their race and national origin.
Plaintiff sought declaratory and injunctive relief requiring defendants to cease the challenged conditions at SVJC, and to provide class members with the standard of care and conditions of confinement mandated by the Constitution.
Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon was assigned to this case on Oct. 4, 2017. The Court held status conferences on Dec. 4, 2017 and on Jan. 9, 2018.
Plaintiff filed an amended complaint on Jan. 31. The amended complaint stated that in December, plaintiff had been transferred to another Virginia facility but remained in the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) and could be transferred back to SVJC at any time. The amended complaint also added two more plaintiffs currently detained at SVJC.
Plaintiffs moved for a preliminary injunction on Feb. 28, asking the Court to enjoin defendants from imposing improper, excessive, and inherently injurious discipline and punishment upon plaintiffs, in terms of physical force and denial of adequate mental health treatment.
On Mar. 21, defendants opposed the preliminary injunction motion. Defendants maintained that they provided "secure education, housing and other services for Plaintiffs[,]" whom they also claimed exhibited "violent and threatening behavior." According to defendants, plaintiffs had not alleged sufficient details of abuse to counter defendants' assertions that their policies and practices were lawful. Plaintiffs replied on Apr. 4.
Discovery is underway and a jury trial is set for Dec. 3-7, 2018. This case is ongoing.
Ava Morgenstern - 05/05/2018
compress summary
