The Queens Detention Facility (QDF) is a federal prison in the

Springfield Gardens Springfield Gardens is a neighborhood in the southeastern area of the New York City borough of Queens, bounded to the north by St. Albans, to the east by Laurelton and Rosedale, to the south by John F. Kennedy International Airport, and to th ...

neighborhood of

Jamaica, Queens Jamaica is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It has a popular large commercial and retail area, though part of the neighborhood is also residential. Jamaica is bordered by Hollis, St Albans, and Cambria Heights to the ea ...

, New York City, and operated by the private prison company

GEO Group 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 Africa, and the United Kingdom. The company ...

. The facility opened in March 1997 under a contract between GEO Group and the

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE; ) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Homeland Security. ICE's stated mission is to protect the Un ...

. When that agreement was not extended by ICE past its mid-2005 expiration, the

United States Marshals Service The United States Marshals Service (USMS) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement agency in the United States. The Marshals Service serves as the enforcement and security arm of the United States federal judi ...

contracted with GEO to house mostly pre-trial federal detainees here. The complex stands within an unmarked former warehouse in an industrial area adjacent to

John F. Kennedy Airport John F. Kennedy International Airport is a major international airport serving New York City and its metropolitan area. JFK Airport is located on the southwestern shore of Long Island, in Queens, New York City, bordering Jamaica Bay. It is t ...

, the entry point for many asylum seekers. In 2020, press reports indicated the facility was most used to house prisoners who were cooperating with the government. This facility is not to be confused with the Queens Detention Complex, a municipal jail operated by the

New York City Department of Correction The New York City Department of Correction (NYCDOC) is the branch of the municipal government of New York City responsible for the custody, control, and care of New York City's imprisoned population, housing the majority of them on Rikers Island ...

at 126-01 82nd Avenue,

Kew Gardens Kew Gardens is a botanical garden, botanic garden in southwest London that houses the "largest and most diverse botany, botanical and mycology, mycological collections in the world". Founded in 1759, from the exotic garden at Kew Park, its li ...

Controversy

The facility has a history of alleged civil rights abuses. In late 1998 at least three inmates attempted suicide, and a number of frustrated asylum seekers engaged in a hunger strike protesting conditions and the length of their detentions. The case of Ghanaian refugee Adelaide Abankwah detained in QDF came to public attention in part because she had been incarcerated there for two years and five months. Abankwah's was one example of many extended detentions. In 2004 more than half of the entire population went on another hunger strike to protest conditions. Local resistance to GEO's expansion plans in 2006 included a report that inmates were on 24-hour lockdown and had no access to exterior recreation. In 2009 two guards were convicted of covering up the beating of an inmate. In December 2011

New York City Public Advocate The office of New York City Public Advocate (President of the City Council) is a citywide elected position in New York City, which is first in line to succeed the Mayor of New York City, mayor. The office serves as a direct link between the wikti ...

Bill de Blasio Bill de Blasio (; born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961; later Warren de Blasio-Wilhelm) is an American politician who was the List of mayors of New York City, 109th mayor of New York City, mayor of New York City from 2014 to 2021. A member of t ...

(later elected

Mayor of New York City The mayor of New York City, officially mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The Mayoralty in the United States, mayor's office administers all ...

in November 2013), along with three other city and state officials, called on the U.S. Department of Justice to end its association with the GEO Group. "This is not complicated: government should not do business with companies that violate basic human rights," de Blasio said.

References

{{coord, 40.657230, -73.764943, format=dms, display=title, type:landmark Prisons in New York City GEO Group Immigration detention centers and prisons in the United States Government buildings in Queens, New York 1997 establishments in New York City Jamaica, Queens