Lawmakers from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus denounced that President Donald Trump's administration "secretly" reactivated a policy that blocks oversight visits to federal immigrant detention centers, a measure that, they assert, violates federal law and a recent court order.

In a joint statement, twelve members of Congress They warned that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has once again barred members of Congress from entering Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities, despite a federal court ruling last December upholding the lawmakers' right to conduct unannounced oversight visits. The group, led by Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chairman Adriano Espaillat, expressed concern about the timing of the decision, just one week after an ICE agent shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis, an incident that has sparked national outrage and renewed criticism of the immigration agency's practices. They denounced contempt of court and returned to court. The congressmen reported that they have returned to federal court to demand explanations from the government as to how this new directive does not violate the law or the current court ruling. The controversy escalated after several Minnesota lawmakers were denied access to a detention center last week, despite possessing a court order authorizing such inspections. According to the lawsuit, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem quietly signed a memo reinstating the seven-day advance notice requirement for congressional visits, a condition that judges had already ruled illegal. The document's existence only came to light after the lawmakers were denied entry in Minnesota, prompting an emergency motion to the District Court of Columbia. “Instead of complying with the law, DHS is attempting to evade a court order by reimposing the same illegal policy,” the plaintiffs stated.They emphasized that oversight is a constitutional responsibility of Congress and not a power that the executive branch can suspend at will. Concerns about the lack of transparency are compounded by official ICE data, which acknowledges at least 10 deaths in detention centers between 2024 and 2025. DHS documents themselves attribute the deaths to medical deficiencies and delays in healthcare, factors that, according to the lawmakers, reinforce the need for independent oversight. Organizations such as Democracy Forward and American Oversight, which represent the members of Congress in the lawsuit, openly questioned the government. “What are they hiding?” they asked, warning that preventing legislative oversight undermines the rule of law and the system of checks and balances. As the case proceeds through the courts, the congressmen insisted they will not give up their attempt to enter the detention centers and verify the conditions in which thousands of immigrants are being held in federal custody.

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