T. Don Hutto Residential Center

The T. Don Hutto Residential Center (formerly known as T. Don Hutto Family Residential Facility) is a guarded, fenced-in, multi-purpose center currently used to detain non-US citizens awaiting the outcome of their immigration status. The center is located at 1001 Welch Street in the city of Taylor, Texas, within Williamson County. Formerly a medium-security state prison, it is operated by the Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) under contract with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (known as ICE) through an ICE Intergovernmental Service Agreement with Williamson County, Texas. It is named after T. Don Hutto, one of the three co-founders of CCA.

History

T. Don Hutto opened in May 2006. Previously, illegal immigrants with children would be released with a notice to appear before an immigration judge. While it has 490 total beds in the facility, it currently houses approximately 300 individuals, about half of whom are children. The detainees are a diverse group, including families of all sorts and of all ages.

Most of the residents are from Central and South America. However, there are also Africans, Asians, Europeans, and Middle Easterners. Some of the families held at the Hutto facility are awaiting adjudication of their claims for relief or asylum. Many of these families have been granted bond and are awaiting payment so that they can be released. The facility is also a staging area for families waiting to be deported to their home countries. None of the families held at the former prison are charged with offenses other than illegal entry.

Since the Hutto facility is privately run, it has been difficult for members of the general public to gather information. Friends, family members, and lawyers of detainees, on the other hand, are granted private visitation 7 days a week with no limit on the number of visits. Human rights groups are also a common sight at the facility. Catholic Charities and the Political Asylum Project of Austin conduct bi-weekly presentations for detainees regarding their legal rights and offer legal assistance as well. Also in the month of March and April 2008, American Civil Liberties Union as well as members of the League of United Latin American Citizens were granted extensive tours of the facility. Community volunteers from area places of worship visit weekly to conduct multiple religious services for detainees.

In 2007, the Women's Refugee Commission released a report, Locking Up Family Values: The Detention of Immigrant Families, draws heavily on research conducted at the T. Don Hutto Residential Center.

The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit against ICE in March 2007 on behalf of 10 juvenile plaintiffs that were housed in the facility at the time claiming that the standards by which they were housed was not in compliance with the government's detention standards for this population. The claims were, amongst other things, improper educational opportunities, not enough privacy, and substandard health care. The relief being sought was the release of the plaintiffs. In August 2007, after the plaintiffs were no longer housed at the facility, the ACLU settled the lawsuit claiming that the situations at the facility had "significantly improved". The Least of These is a documentary based on the lawsuit and sub-par conditions.

On August 6, 2009, federal officials announced that T. Don Hutto would no longer house immigrant families. Instead, only female detainees will be housed there. In September 2009, the last families left the facility and were moved to the much smaller Berks Family Residential Center in Pennsylvania.

External links

• Don Hutto Family Residential Facility – Corrections Corporation of America
• Don Hutto Family Residential Facility – Immigration and Customs Enforcement
• ACLU-produced video containing interviews with children who were held there
• TDonHutto.blogspot.com: A weblog for those in opposition to the facility