El Centro and San Diego Facilities Generally Met CBP's TEDS Standards but Struggled with Prolonged Detention and Data Integrity

In March 2022, we conducted unannounced inspections of four U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facilities in the El Centro and San Diego areas of California, specifically two U.S. Border Patrol stations and two Office of Field Operations (OFO) ports of entry. Our inspections and subsequent analysis showed instances of prolonged detention for migrants and overcrowding in some holding facilities. In one Border Patrol station, the prolonged custody times contributed to overcrowding in half of its holding rooms. Of the 447 detainees in custody during our site visits, CBP held 187 (or 42 percent) longer than prescribed by the National Standards on Transport, Escort, Detention, and Search (TEDS), which generally limit detention in these facilities to 72 hours. This prolonged detention and overcrowding put a strain on CBP’s resources, resulting in inconsistent compliance with TEDS standards in the El Centro and San Diego areas. The facilities we inspected generally met standards related to providing drinking water, snacks, meals, and supplies, but Border Patrol’s compliance with standards for access to showers, handling of personal property, and access to interpretation services was inconsistent. Finally, Border Patrol’s and OFO’s electronic systems of record had data integrity issues related to tracking of medical services, showers, welfare checks, and meals.