ICE denies Rep. Matsui access to Sacramento facilities in ‘surprise visit’
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- ICE barred Rep. Doris Matsui from entering Sacramento offices during visit.
- Matsui sought access after reports alleged poor overnight conditions for detainees.
- ICE declined comment; agency faces scrutiny over national detention standards.
Immigration officials denied Rep. Doris Matsui entry to its Sacramento facilities Friday morning during what she described as a “surprise visit” prompted by reports of detained immigrants sleeping on the floor.
The visit came a few days after Matsui and other local elected officials sent letters to U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement demanding transparency and access into the facility. Their demands followed several reports that ICE had kept individuals overnight at its downtown Sacramento office for consecutive days with limited water, little access to restrooms and no air conditioning.
The alleged conditions would not meet 2025 National Detention Standards issued by ICE. Holding rooms must be well ventilated and equipped to provide handwashing, potable water and toilets that allow for an “appropriate amount of privacy.”
“That building is not a detention facility,” Matsui said Friday, following the visit. “It’s an office building.”
Matsui entered the John E. Moss federal building, which holds offices for several agencies, around 9 a.m. Friday hoping to investigate the conditions. She argued that her position in Congress provided a “constitutional mandate” to tour the ICE facility.
But when Matsui reached an ICE waiting room — typically used by people checking in for appointments — an unnamed official told her she could not go any farther. Instead, Matsui said the man offered to contact her office to schedule a future tour.
ICE did not respond to a request for comment on Friday. The agency has not denied holding individuals overnight in previous requests from The Sacramento Bee.
Much remains unknown about the exact number of detained people held at the facility, said Giselle Garcia, programs director for NorCal Resist, a Sacramento-based activist organization. The group, which initially contacted local and state leaders, said its limited knowledge mostly stems from family members who are able to connect with detained individuals.
“Which is why we do think that a surprise visit like what Congresswoman Matsui did today is important so as to not give them (ICE) a chance to try to hide what they’re doing how,” Garcia said. “We encourage Congresswoman Matsui, among others of our state and local officials, to have a forceful disposition and add teeth to their demands for these agencies to allow them access.”
The alleged circumstances, however, mirror similar reports across the country that immigrants are being kept inside overcrowded and unsanitary offices for multiple days. In many cases, these offices are designed to only hold people for a few hours.
Other Democratic members of Congress, including those in Texas, New York and Illinois, have also been denied entry to immigration detention facilities in recent months.
Matsui on Friday promised to return to the building but did not specify when. She hoped it was “sooner rather than later.”
“I am going to fight the Trump administration on this,” Matsui said. “This is our fight — a fight for everybody.”
Garcia encouraged Matsui to return with a more “forceful disposition” and use the community to help pressure these agencies.
“It’s time that our officials realize that without their constituents, when they’re facing such an authoritarian government, without constituent support, they might not have enough pressure to actually sway these agencies to follow the law and provide transparency,” Garcia said.
Rep. Ami Bera issued a statement on Friday also denouncing the “abhorrent conditions” at the ICE facility.
“Under the Trump administration, ICE has too often lacked transparency and accountability and strayed from targeted enforcement against violent criminals,” Bera said in the written statement. “I’ll continue working with local leaders to secure answers and ensure humane treatment.”
The recent reports add to the concern over the federal building, where immigration authorities have arrested people since late May.
This story was originally published August 22, 2025 at 2:07 PM.
