Torrance County Approves ICE Detention Contract Extension Over Public Objections
ESTANCIA – The Torrance County Commission on Thursday unanimously approved what county officials indicated is likely the final extension of the county's contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for the Torrance County Detention Facility in Estancia.
The contract modification extends the intergovernmental service agreement between Torrance County and ICE from its March 31, 2026, expiration through April 30, 2026. In addition to extending the performance period, the modification incorporates a new federal wage determination effective April 1, 2026, and a new collective bargaining agreement for detention facility staff.
County Manager J. Jordan Barela told commissioners that CoreCivic, the private prison company that owns and operates the detention facility, is negotiating a direct contract with ICE that would remove Torrance County as a party to the agreement. Barela said officials expect the direct contract to be finalized within 30 days, at which point the county's intergovernmental service agreement with ICE would sunset and would not be renewed.
The pending transition also aligns with the timeline of House Bill 9, the Immigrant Safety Act, which Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed into law on Feb. 5. The law prohibits state and local governments from entering into or maintaining agreements
with ICE for civil immigration detention and takes effect May 20. Barela noted the contract modification would not conflict with that legislation.
The county's ICE contract has been the subject of sustained scrutiny for years. The agreement expired Oct. 31, 2025, but CoreCivic continued to hold detainees at the facility without a valid contract. When the commission convened a special meeting on Dec. 30, 2025, to approve a backdated extension through March 31, 2026, the New Mexico Department of Justice responded with a January 9, 2026, letter stating the extension was "likely improper and invalid" due to alleged violations of
the state Open Meetings Act, as previously reported by the Mountainair Dispatch on January 12, 2026. The commission subsequently re-approved the same contract on February 4, 2026, under the advice of legal counsel, as reported by the Mountainair Dispatch on February 5, 2026.
Thursday's brief (approximately 20-minute) meeting drew substantial public comment. Tiffany Wang, a legal organizing fellow attorney with Innovation Law Lab, told commissioners the organization was present to provide legal orientation to detainees who have no other access to legal support. Wang argued the commission was once again attempting to backdate an extension of an expired contract, calling the pattern of short-term renewals without timely communication from ICE deeply troubling.
"I've seen this commission be diligent in the various service contracts the past two years that I've been coming to these meetings," Wang said, but added that ICE and CoreCivic have been "allowed to act with impunity and open this county up to serious legal liabilities."
Ian Philibaum, also with Innovation Law Lab, outlined what he described as specific and ongoing violations of the Performance Based National Detention Standards at the facility, citing issues with medical care, water access, legal resources, plumbing and sanitation, and staffing levels in security control booths. It is not known whether these violations have been independently verified or found in the section of the TCDF reserved for non-ICE detainees, such as Torrance County Sheriff’s Office arrestees and US Marshals Service arrestees.
PJ Podesta, a third Innovation Law Lab representative, read written statements from detainees collected over several months describing conditions at the facility, including complaints about sanitation, lack of medical care, and infrastructure failures. Podesta said a detainee who credibly believes he has cancer has been vomiting blood and experiencing severe pain for several months, but has not received adequate medical attention.
Jolie Michaels, a clinical social worker, warned that conditions at the detention facility carry lasting psychiatric and medical consequences for detainees, including post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and suicidal ideation. Michaels said detainees are not receiving mental health treatment, even when they request it.
Former County Commissioner Samuel Schropp, who now resides in Costa Rica, recounted a 2023 meeting with then-Warden George Davis in which the warden told him CoreCivic "is a large corporation, and they can close this prison and move
on at any time." This appears to imply that CoreCivic would leave if Torrance County gave any resistance to the corporation. Schropp said the repeated 30-day extensions are consistent with that posture and warned the commission that political momentum nationally is building against private prisons.
The commission approved the contract extension on a 3-0 vote with no discussion among commissioners, as is consistent with past practice. Commission Chair Ryan Schwebach, Commissioner Kevin McCall, and Commissioner Linda Jaramillo all voted in favor of the extension.
Corona School Bond Fails Despite Torrance County Support
In the meeting's other action item, the commission unanimously approved the canvassing of a special bond election for the Corona Public School District.
County Clerk Sylvia Chavez reported that of 68 ballots mailed to voters, 33 were returned. Nine were rejected because voters did not sign them, leaving 24 ballots processed through the tabulation machine. In Torrance County, the bond question
passed 13-11. However, because the Corona school district spans three counties (to wit, Torrance, Lincoln
and Socorro counties), the measure required passage in the combined results across all three jurisdictions. The bond did not pass in the other counties and failed overall.
Chavez said no recount would be triggered because state statute provides for recounts only in candidate races, not bond questions.
Commissioner McCall asked about the separate Estancia school bond election. Chavez confirmed it had been canvassed at the commission's last regular meeting and that the Estancia bond passed.
The next regular meeting of the Torrance County Commission is scheduled for April 8, 2026.