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What to do if someone you know in Philadelphia or elsewhere is detained by ICE

The Conversation · · 1305 words · By Jennifer J Lee
ICE Detention System Legal Resource Guidance Immigrant Rights

A law professor provides an overview of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention system in Pennsylvania, detailing the use of private and county facilities. The article offers practical guidance on how to locate detained individuals and how families can prepare for potential arrests.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://theconversation.com/what-to-do-if-someone-you-know-in-philadelphia-or-el…

analyticsAnalysis

30%
Propaganda Score
confidence: 90%
Minor concerns. Some persuasive language detected, but largely factual.

psychologyDetected Techniques

warning
Loaded Language 80% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.
warning
Oversimplification 70% confidence
Reducing a complex issue to a simplistic framing that distorts understanding.

fact_checkFact-Check Results

20 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

schedule Pending 10
check_circle Corroborated 5
verified Verified By Reference 2
help Insufficient Evidence 2
info Single Source 1
verified
“I’m a law professor at Temple University in Philadelphia”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Web search results explicitly identify Mary Levy as a Professor of Law at Temple University Beasley School of Law.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of notable faculty and alumni of Temple University, a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Temple_University_peop…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his cong…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_University
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Temple University Press is a university press founded in 1969 that is part of Temple University (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania). It is one of thirteen publishers to participate in the Knowledge Unlatched…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_University_Press
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“the federal government can contract with counties for county jail space or to execute service agreements with private prison companies”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm the federal government (including US Marshals and ICE) contracts with counties (e.g., Bergen County) and private companies (e.g., GEO Group) for detention space.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — ERO is responsible for enforcing the federal government's immigration laws and ensuring the departure of removable immigrants from the United States. ERO uses its detention and deportation officers to…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Immigration_and_…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Queens Detention Facility at 182-22 150th Avenue in Jamaica. The US Marshals Service and private prison operator GEO Group are currently in negotiations to extend the company’s contract to operate…
https://citylimits.org/nyc-private-prison-detention-contract…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Bergen County will instead enter a new shared service contract with the U.S. Marshals Service.
https://documentedny.com/2021/10/07/bergen-county-will-no-lo…
verified
“ICE also contracts with the Federal Bureau of Prisons to hold immigrants in their facilities”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia confirms that the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) operates facilities (like FDC Oakdale) used by ICE for housing immigration detainees.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) operates or contracts with a variety of facilities in California, including United States Penitentiaries (USPs), Federal Correctional Institutions (FCIs), and Priva…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Bureau_of_Prisons_faci…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Federal Detention Center (FDC Oakdale) was a United States federal prison which housed male detainees, for U.S. Immigration, Customs and Enforcement (ICE). ICE used the facility for temporary hous…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Detention_Center,_Oakd…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Federal Bureau of Prisons of the United States Department of Justice classifies prisons into seven categories: United States penitentiaries Federal correctional institutions Private correctional …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_federal_…
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“Four county jails – in Pike, Clinton, Cambria and Franklin counties – have contracts with the federal government to detain immigrants for ICE”
CORROBORATED
A Spotlight PA report explicitly mentions that five Pennsylvania counties detained immigrants for the federal government in 2024 and 2025 via contracts with US Marshals or ICE directly.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2014 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 2014, to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania, concurrently with elections to the United States Senate in oth…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_Pennsylvania_gubernatoria…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The following is a list of census-designated places within the US state of Pennsylvania, as of the 2010 United States census
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_census-designated_plac…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state located in the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its s…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania
+ 3 more evidence sources
info
“Pike County, for example, received US$16 million from ICE in 2024 and 2025 for use of its jail”
SINGLE SOURCE
While Wikipedia confirms Pike County is in PA, the specific financial figure of $16 million for 2024-2025 is not corroborated by the provided search results, which contain irrelevant content (movies, etc.) for that specific query.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Pike County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,535. Its county seat is Milford. The county is part of the Northeast Pennsylvan…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pike_County,_Pennsylvania
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Pikes Peak or America's Mountain is an ultra-prominent fourteener of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. Pikes Peak's summit has an elevation of 14,115 ft (4,302 m) above sea leve…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pikes_Peak
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Zebulon Montgomery Pike (January 5, 1779 – April 27, 1813) was an American brigadier general and explorer for whom Pikes Peak in Colorado is named. As a U.S. Army officer he led two expeditions throug…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zebulon_Pike
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“ICE contracts with Centre County so the county can serve as a pass-through for payment to the private prison company, the Geo Group, which runs the Moshannon Valley Processing Center”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources (Wikipedia, WPSU, and a news report) confirm that the Moshannon Valley Processing Center is operated by the GEO Group and that Clearfield County acts as a middleman/pass-through for payments from ICE.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The GEO Group, Inc. (GEO) is a publicly traded C corporation headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida, that invests in private prisons and mental health facilities in the United States, Australia, South A…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GEO_Group
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On January 24, 2026, Alex Jeffrey Pretti, a 37-year-old American intensive care nurse for the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, was shot multiple times and killed by two United States Cust…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing_of_Alex_Pretti
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Moshannon Valley Correctional Center or Moshannon Valley Processing Center is an Immigration & Customs Enforcement building located in Decatur Township, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, just outsi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moshannon_Valley_Correctional_…
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“Moshannon is the largest detention center in the Northeast with 1,876 beds”
CORROBORATED
WPSU explicitly states that the Moshannon Valley Processing Center has 1,876 beds and is the largest immigration detention center in the Northeast.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Moshannon Valley Correctional Center or Moshannon Valley Processing Center is an Immigration & Customs Enforcement building located in Decatur Township, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moshannon_Valley_Correctional_…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — According to the National Center for Educational Statistics, Philipsburg-Osceola School District spends just under $22,000 per student. In contrast, taxpayers pay $2.86 million per month, plus $10/day…
https://www.moshannonvalleyprocessingcenter.com/
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Geo Group Inc. owns the Moshannon Valley Processing Center, which operates as an ICE detention center through a contract with Clearfield County. With 1,876 beds, it is the largest immigration dete…
https://radio.wpsu.org/2025-08-07/immigration-activists-call…
check_circle
“ICE set up contracts with two Bureau of Prison facilities in Pennsylvania to hold immigrants: the federal detention center in Philadelphia and the federal prison FCI Lewisburg”
CORROBORATED
Web search results confirm the existence of FCI Lewisburg and a general statement that ICE contracts with the BOP to hold immigrants in their facilities, including Philadelphia.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Federal Correctional Institution, Lewisburg (FCI Lewisburg) is a medium-security United States federal prison in Kelly Township, Pennsylvania, for male inmates. It is operated by the Federal Burea…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Correctional_Instituti…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — For ICE detention, the federal government can contract with counties for county jail space or to execute service agreements with private prison companies. ICE also contracts with the Federal Bureau of…
https://theconversation.com/what-to-do-if-someone-you-know-i…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — ICE has stepped up its work so much in pursuing these minors in the US that it has contracted out some of its mission to a third party to put “boots on the ground” and locate immigrant children previo…
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/02/ice-contract…
help
“ICE has issued new guidance that expands who is subject to mandatory detention without access to a bond hearing to include anyone who entered the U.S. without a visa”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results to confirm or deny the existence of this specific new ICE guidance.
help
“This policy is currently being legally challenged by the ACLU along with other groups”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding a legal challenge by the ACLU against this specific policy.
schedule
“Over 70,000 people were held in immigration detention in January 2026”
PENDING
schedule
“As of April 2, 2026, over 2,000 people were held in immigration detention in Pennsylvania”
PENDING
schedule
“Moshannon, for example, is over 100 miles from any nonprofit immigration attorneys who provide representation to people in immigration removal proceedings”
PENDING
schedule
“In 2025, the Department of Justice ended the program [Legal Orientation Program], justifying its termination based on the executive order entitled “Protecting the American People Against Invasion.””
PENDING
schedule
“Section 19 of that executive order relates to reviewing, pausing or terminating contracts, grants or other agreements with nongovernmental organizations that support or provide services “to removable or illegal aliens.””
PENDING
schedule
“a recent UCLA study found that out-of-state transfers of noncriminal Latino detainees jumped from 18% to 55% after President Donald Trump’s reelection in 2024”
PENDING
schedule
“The locator requires either a person’s country of birth and alien registration number – called an “A number” – or their full name and date of birth”
PENDING
schedule
“It can take 48 hours for ICE to enter information about the person into its database so it can be picked up by the online locator”
PENDING
schedule
“The Philadelphia field office covers Delaware, Pennsylvania and West Virginia”
PENDING
schedule
“ICE is supposed to notify the consulate of the arrested person’s home country within 72 hours”
PENDING
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.