Democratic members of Congress held an oversight visit to the Campbell County Detention Center in Northern Kentucky and reported constituents in ICE custody described inadequate medical care and other mistreatment. Lawmakers cited cases including diabetic detainees not receiving appropriate food and a woman who miscarried twins and was placed in solitary confinement. County officials strongly denied the allegations and defended their medical practices. The visit has prompted renewed calls for oversight and proposed legislation to end such detention arrangements.
Lawmakers Decry ‘Inhumane’ Conditions at Campbell County ICE Jail; Officials Deny Abuse Claims
From left: Representatives Gwen Moore, Wisconsin 4th congressional district, Morgan McGarvey, Kentucky 3rd congressional district, and Delia C. Ramirez, Illinois 3rd congressional district, listen to Newport resident Jeff Richardson explain his disagreement with Campbell County Detention Center holding immigrants detained by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Monday, July 27, 2026. Richardson is the co-founder of the 3R Fund for Immigrants, a nonprofit organization that provides legal funds to immigrants detained by ICE or the Department of Homeland Security in the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky area.
A delegation of Democratic members of the U.S. House visited the Campbell County Detention Center in Northern Kentucky — a facility that houses Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees — and reported constituents held there have complained of mistreatment, including inadequate medical care.
Allegations Reported During Oversight Visit
The group, which included representatives from Illinois, Wisconsin and Kentucky, said the trip was an "oversight visit" because detainees at Campbell County come from across ICE's regional jurisdiction: Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Missouri, Kentucky and Kansas.
Campbell County Detention Center jailer James A. Daley talks to the press after members from the U.S. House of Representatives toured his facility on Monday, July 27, 2026.
Lawmakers described multiple accounts from people in custody: two men with diabetes who said the facility did not provide medically appropriate food, a person reportedly prescribed pre-diabetes medication while in need of insulin, and at least one woman who suffered a miscarriage while detained.
"The inhumane conditions of this place must stop, which is exactly why I have legislation to end this detention, to redirect the money – your taxpayer dollars to community safety, to housing, to healthcare, to community," U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.) said at a news conference after the visit.
"There doesn't seem to be any concern about bereavement counseling or any aftercare. I think they're being treated like commodities," U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) said, describing unclear responses from staff when asked about reports of miscarriages and aftercare.
County Response
Campbell County Jailer James Daley strongly denied the allegations, calling them "an absolute lie" and describing the congressional visit as "politically motivated." He defended the jail's medical care, saying staff are "very cognizant of providing very good medical care to the people at our facility."
Representative Delia C. Ramirez, Illinois 3rd congressional district speaks to the press about purported conditions inside of Campbell County Detention Center while Morgan McGarvey, Kentucky 3rd congressional district, listens after their visit on Monday, July 27, 2026.
Daley would not comment on individual inmates but confirmed that a detainee returning from a hospital visit was placed in a solitary cell so she could be housed in the jail's medical wing — a decision he described as medical placement, not punishment.
Context And Next Steps
Campbell County signed an intergovernmental agreement to house ICE detainees in May 2024; officials say the county detained fewer than 10 people on ICE's behalf that year. According to previous reporting by The Cincinnati Enquirer, the county held more than 1,200 ICE detainees in 2025.
The visit drew attention to broader questions about oversight, medical care standards for detainees and the use of local jails to house federal immigration detainees. Rep. Ramirez said she has introduced legislation aimed at ending this kind of detention arrangement and redirecting federal funds toward community services.
Who attended: Representatives Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.), Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) and Morgan McGarvey (D-Ky.), among members of the congressional delegation from Illinois, Wisconsin and Kentucky, participated in the oversight visit.
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