San Diego Sheriff Cedes Sexual Assault Investigations to Private Detention Warden
The San Diego County Sheriff’s Office did not investigate at least seven 2025 rape allegations at Otay Mesa, deferring authority to CoreCivic under a 2020 memorandum.
- In 2025, San Diego County Sheriff's officials failed to investigate at least seven reported sexual assaults at the Otay Mesa Detention Center, ceding criminal investigation authority to civilian administrators employed by CoreCivic.
- A 2020 memorandum of understanding signed by former San Diego Sheriff Bill Gore gives Warden Christopher LaRose authority to decide whether to investigate sexual assault allegations at the facility.
- Records show 159 total service calls to the facility last year, with twenty-one involving the Prison Rape Elimination Act; CoreCivic "did not request our involvement" for any incidents, the sheriff's office stated.
- Supervisors Chair Terra Lawson-Remer called the delegation of criminal authority "troubling," while Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe questioned why the county facilitates ICE detention operations during budget constraints.
- County officials allege this month that CoreCivic illegally blocked a public health inspection, while Susan Beaty of the California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice stated, "We're horrified but not surprised" by uninvestigated assaults.
17 Articles
17 Articles
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Sheriff not investigating 7 reported rapes at Otay Mesa detention center
A CoreCivic vehicle at the Otay Mesa Detention Center. (File photo by Adrian Childress/Times of San Diego) This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. San Diego County Sheriff’s officials failed to investigate at least seven reported sexual assaults at the privately run Otay Mesa immigration detention center in 2025, and records show the agency has ceded control of the cases to civilian administrators employ…
Sheriff failed to investigate 7 rape cases at ICE detention center
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters.San Diego County Sheriff’s officials failed to investigate at least seven reported sexual assaults at the privately run Otay Mesa immigration detention center in 2025, and records show the agency has ceded control of th...
¿Por qué una empresa privada y no el sheriff está investigando violaciones en un centro de detención de ICE?
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. This article is also available in English. Read it here. Los funcionarios del sheriff del condado de San Diego no investigaron al menos siete denuncias de agresión sexual en el centro de detención de inmigrantes de Otay Mesa, gestionado por una empresa privada, […] The post ¿Por qué una empresa privada y no el sheriff está investigando violaciones en un centro de d…
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