Texas Immigrant Detention Centers: Rising Solitary Confinement Rates

(CONROE, TEXAS) Texas immigrant detention centers are placing people in solitary confinement at rising rates, with two facilities among the highest users nationwide in the past year. From April 2024 to May 2025, more than 10,500 people in U.S. immigration custody were sent to solitary, and the Montgomery Processing Center in Conroe recorded 1,075 placements, the second-highest total in the country during that period. The South Texas ICE Processing Center in Pearsall reported 488 placements, ranking in the national top five. Advocates and families say the practice is expanding while oversight remains weak.

A sharp rise followed new Immigration and Customs Enforcement tracking rules in December 2024. ICE now requires staff to document every solitary placement, no matter how brief or whether the person is considered vulnerable. According to analysis by VisaVerge.com, these new reports show longer stays and more frequent use across many immigrant detention centers. The trend is most intense in Texas, where local jails and private operators hold large numbers of people for the federal government.

At the Montgomery Processing Center, the average stay in solitary was 36.6 days over recent years, and one person was kept isolated for 427 days between September 2018 and September 2023. Nationally, early 2025 data showed vulnerable people spending an average of 38 consecutive days in solitary, up from 14 days in late 2021. Many placements cross the 15-day threshold that the United Nations classifies as torture. Families describe severe stress, sleep loss, and fear when a loved one is moved to isolation, sometimes without clear explanation.

Nearly half of recent solitary placements involve people with mental health conditions. ICE policy states solitary should be a last resort for those at risk, including people with mental illness, disabilities, or LGBTQ+ detainees. Yet advocates say people who suffer a mental health crisis or express suicidal thoughts often end up alone in a cell, which can make symptoms worse. Staff sometimes frame these placements as “protective,” but the effect can be the same: long hours without social contact, little fresh air, and less access to services.

People report being sent to solitary for a range of reasons: alleged rule violations, fights, refusing orders, or protesting conditions. Others say they were isolated after asking for basic needs, such as medical care, phone access, or clean clothing. Civil rights groups and attorneys have documented cases where solitary appears arbitrary or retaliatory, which runs against ICE policy and international standards. These claims are hard to verify independently because records can be limited, and external visits to restrictive units are rare.

Oversight and policy context

ICE says health and safety are priorities, and the agency maintains a formal review process for segregation. The agency’s guidance, including the ICE Directive 11065.2 on segregation, calls for careful review of any placement, extra checks for vulnerable people, and limits on duration.

Still, enforcement of these standards often depends on local facility leadership, on-site ICE officers, and private contractors. The GEO Group, which runs the Montgomery Processing Center, says it follows Department of Homeland Security rules. But advocates point to repeated reports of trauma, self-harm, and medical neglect tied to isolation.

Texas lawmakers and members of Congress have pressed for more control of solitary in immigrant detention centers. Several proposals would require:

• Detailed reporting to independent monitors
• Fast mental health evaluations
• Time limits for isolation

Early drafts also discuss expanding alternatives, such as:

• Step-down units
• Increased mental health staffing
• Improved conflict mediation to prevent the use of isolation

Supporters argue these changes would reduce harm and bring practices closer to international norms. Opponents say facilities need flexible tools to manage safety risks and prevent violence.

The rise in solitary also mirrors a broader expansion in immigration detention under current federal policies. While President Biden has emphasized noncitizen processing reforms, federal contracts with private operators continue, and bed counts in Texas remain high. The larger the detained population, the more likely facilities will rely on segregation to respond to incidents, staff shortages, or medical needs. Attorneys say this cycle feeds the numbers.

Human impact and calls for reform

The human cost is steep. People held in solitary describe isolation as “time stopping.” Without regular contact, ordinary frustrations can become panic. A person with depression can slip deeper; a person with anxiety might spiral. For families, calls go silent, and legal visits can become harder to arrange.

Lawyers note that clients in solitary often struggle to prepare their asylum claims or present evidence, which can affect the outcome of their cases in the United States 🇺🇸 immigration courts.

Medical groups warn that isolation longer than two weeks can cause lasting harm. Many placements in Texas pass that mark, and some continue for weeks or months. Advocates say this is especially dangerous for people who already have trauma from violence, war, or persecution. Prolonged solitary can trigger:

• Flashbacks
• Insomnia
• Thoughts of self-harm

Once a person reaches that point, recovery can be long, even after release.

Facility officials often respond that solitary may be used to protect a person who is at risk from others or to separate people after a fight. They argue the tool is sometimes needed to prevent serious injury.

Critics counter that the default should be less restrictive options, such as:

• More supervised time out of cell
• Access to therapy and peer support groups
• Targeted housing units

They also urge clear limits on duration, with written reasons reviewed by an outside authority.

For Texas communities near these centers, the debate is no longer abstract. Local hospitals see detainees in crisis. Legal aid groups divert staff to check on clients in segregation. Churches and volunteers field desperate calls from families asking where their loved one is and whether they are safe. These ripple effects make solitary confinement not only a policy question but a community health issue.

Advocates want Congress and the Department of Homeland Security to:

• Set firm caps on solitary use
• Strengthen audits
• Tie federal payments to compliance with mental health standards
• Post transparent monthly data showing how many people go to solitary, for how long, and why

Without publicly available, detailed data, it is hard to judge whether policy changes are effective or simply reshuffle numbers on paper.

Data and trends

The data from April 2024 through May 2025 paint a clear picture: Texas facilities, especially the Montgomery Processing Center and the South Texas ICE Processing Center, are at the center of the national surge.

Key figures:

• Total solitary placements nationwide (Apr 2024–May 2025): 10,500+
• Montgomery Processing Center (Conroe): 1,075 placements
• South Texas ICE Processing Center (Pearsall): 488 placements
• Montgomery average solitary stay: 36.6 days
• National average for vulnerable people (early 2025): 38 consecutive days (up from 14 days in late 2021)
• Instances exceeding 15 days, the UN threshold for torture: many

These numbers highlight longer average stays and intensive use of solitary for people with mental health conditions, indicating gaps between policy and practice that officials must address to reduce harm.

As detention grows and reporting becomes more detailed, the story behind the numbers will likely shape the next round of reforms. The question for federal leaders, private operators, and Texas lawmakers is whether they will shift toward safer alternatives or allow the current pattern to continue. VisaVerge.com reports that momentum is building for change, but the pace—and the toll on people living alone in locked cells—remains uncertain.