U.S. Congressman Dan Goldman visited and inspected the ICE detention facility at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, according to a News 12 New York exclusive. The visit was part of his continued effort to keep watch over how detainees there are being treated.
Nearly 200 detainees have been held at the Brooklyn facility since last June. Goldman said they are kept in separate cells with an open area in the middle that they are able to walk in.
When he first started making visits, Goldman said, detainees complained about a lack of medicine, phones and showers. After his fourth visit, however, he said that conditions had gotten better for those being held.
Goldman credited the improvements to sustained scrutiny. The persistent oversight keeps the facility on its toes, he said, because staff know detainees can speak freely to visitors.
He explained that his office has a process in which detainees sign release forms so that lawmakers and their staff can speak with them directly. That access, he said, allows them to find out what is actually going on inside the facility.
Goldman's own tenure is coming to an end, as he lost his primary election and will be out of office at the close of the year. He was defeated by Brad Lander, whose campaign spokesperson said he would make similar visits to the facility if he wins in November.