The federal tent complex known as Camp East Montana—located on Fort Bliss in El Paso—has become the subject of a federal class-action lawsuit that accuses Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and several government officials of maintaining dire and unconstitutional conditions for people held there. The complaint, brought by a coalition of civil rights and human rights organizations, lists multiple allegations ranging from inadequate medical care to abusive security practices.
Plaintiffs say the sprawling site, erected rapidly to detain large numbers of migrants, has seen serious health and safety problems including three reported deaths since it opened, an outbreak of measles, and almost 50 cited violations of detention standards in under a year of operation. The lawsuit seeks relief for current and future civil detainees and aims to hold responsible agencies and leaders accountable.
What the complaint alleges
The class-action filing catalogs a broad set of claims. According to the complaint, detainees at Camp East Montana endured unsanitary living conditions, insufficient and spoiled food, and what lawyers describe as abhorrent medical and mental health care, even for people with serious chronic illnesses such as cancer and HIV. The suit also accuses guards of using excessive force, imposing solitary confinement indiscriminately, and engaging in sexual harassment during searches.
Beyond physical abuse, the plaintiffs assert systemic failings that amount to constitutional violations. They describe tents with poor ventilation where sand and dust infiltrate living spaces, crowded sleeping areas with persistent odors, and mental health crises that go unaddressed—driving some detainees to contemplate suicide or to abandon legal claims by requesting deportation to escape the environment.
Health incidents and documented violations
The complaint notes a measles outbreak that state health officials confirmed on March 3, 2026, when the Texas Department of Health identified active infections in 14 detained individuals. ICE later reported that, as of March 12, there were no active measles cases at the facility after quarantine measures. The filing also cites outbreaks and the risk of respiratory illnesses like tuberculosis because of the camp’s dusty conditions and inadequate medical responses.
Legal teams state the camp recorded nearly 50 violations of applicable detention standards during its first months. These violations, combined with three reported deaths and documented incidents of alleged physical harm, form the backbone of the plaintiffs’ claims about the facility’s dangerous and punitive character.
Who is suing and who is named
The lawsuit was filed in federal court in El Paso by civil rights organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, the ACLU nationally, Human Rights Watch, the Texas Civil Rights Project, and the law firm Farella Braun + Martel LLP. Four detainees are named as individual plaintiffs—bringing claims on behalf of themselves and others detained now or in the future.
Defendants include the Department of Homeland Security and its secretary, Markwayne Mullin; ICE and its acting director, Todd Lyons; leaders of the El Paso field office, including acting director Marisa Flores and assistant field office director Angel Garite; as well as the Pentagon and the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth. The suit invokes the Fifth Amendment and the Administrative Procedure Act in seeking declaratory and injunctive relief.
Voices from the petition
One named plaintiff, represented by advocacy groups, described severe mistreatment by guards that allegedly resulted in hospitalization and lasting injuries. The filing includes reports from multiple detainees who describe being beaten, put into isolation after seeking counsel, and subjected to invasive pat-downs that some allege involved sexual touching without consent. Attorneys say many people detained at the site do not have criminal records—only about 20% were identified as having a criminal background—underscoring that these are civil detainees entitled to constitutional protections.
Context and response
Camp East Montana has been central to a broader expansion of immigration detention capacity across the United States. The facility has an advertised capacity of up to 5,000 people and has averaged approximately 2,505 people in custody on any given day in the current fiscal year, according to the complaint. Plaintiffs argue the camp reflects policy choices to build a large, deterrent detention network while weakening oversight mechanisms and restricting congressional visits.
The Department of Homeland Security has responded to public reports by denying that detainees are abused or denied proper food and medical care. A DHS spokesperson characterized the allegations as false and emphasized ICE’s detention standards, while noting steps taken to address the measles cases. Nevertheless, the coalition pressing the lawsuit says documented incidents, eyewitness accounts, and internal findings demonstrate a pattern of abuses that warrants court intervention.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs describe the situation as an urgent civil rights crisis and seek accountability for the alleged harms. Their Legal action aims not only to obtain remedies for individuals who have suffered but also to compel systemic changes to how the federal government houses and treats civil immigration detainees.
