Brooks County Detention Center

The Brooks County Detention Center in Falfurrias, Texas is a facility that ICE’s online detention-facility directory lists under the Harlingen Field Office: the ICE facility page we checked on October 8, 2026 showed “Updated: 10/06/2026.” ICE’s own inspection records from 2007 and 2016 name private companies as its owner and operator, and ICE’s 2016 inspection report says ICE began housing detainees there in 2005 under an intergovernmental agreement. The details below come from that ICE page, ICE’s inspection reports and data files, and EOIR, and we name the source of each.

What sets this facility apart for families: ICE’s page says in-person family visits are on Sunday and Monday only, booked by phone; it gives a separate extension (ext. 130) for urgent messages; and it routes deposits through accesscorrections.com or a mailed money order. The facility is not in ICE’s FY2026 detention statistics (see “How ICE uses this facility” below), and ICE’s December 2016 inspection is the only report its oversight index lists for it.

Facility quick reference

ICE’s December 2016 inspection report says the facility opened in May 2001, that ICE’s Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations began housing detainees there in 2005 under a non-dedicated Intergovernmental Service Agreement (IGSA), and that it held “Male and female detainees of security classification levels low and medium low” for longer than 72 hours. That report gives an ICE detainee bed capacity of 200 and an average ICE detainee population of 42 (both from an ERO facility list report as of November 21, 2016), and says the average length of stay was “just 6 days.” It names Correct Care Solutions as the medical provider and Brothers Commissary Services LLC for food services, and says “The facility has no accreditations.” These are 2016 figures; ICE’s facility page, checked October 8, 2026, gives no capacity or population.

How to find someone held here

1. Start with ICE. Use the ICE Online Detainee Locator System at locator.ice.gov.
2. Call the number on ICE’s page. ICE’s facility page says: “If you need information about a detainee that is housed at this facility, you may call (361) 325-3340 between the hours of 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.” ICE asks callers to have the person’s first, last and hyphenated names, any aliases, date of birth and country of birth ready.
3. Leaving an urgent message. ICE’s page says: “Detainees cannot receive incoming calls.” To leave an urgent message, ICE’s page says “you must call (361) 325-3340 ext.130” and leave the detainee’s full name, alien registration number (A-number), and your name and a phone number where you can be reached; “The detainee will be given your message.”
4. Case questions to ICE. ICE’s page says requests for case information about people detained here can be sent to Harlingen_Outreach@ice.dhs.gov, and that this mailbox does not accept applications for a stay of removal or case appeals.
5. Finding the deportation officer. ICE’s page says a representative can learn the identity of a client’s deportation officer by contacting the Harlingen Field Office at (956) 389-7500, and that “a G-28 must be on file for any information to be disclosed.” More on the field office is on our Harlingen Field Office page.

Visiting

Days and booking. ICE’s facility page says: “Please call (361) 325-3340 to schedule visits with a detainee. ICE visitation is on Sunday and Monday between the hours of 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.” ICE’s page does not mention video or at-home visits for this facility.

How much visiting time. ICE’s page says: “Each detainee will receive two (2) one-hour blocks of visitation time per week. Each visit, regardless of duration, will count as one (1) hour.”

Rules (all from ICE’s page):

• Non-contact: “All family or other social visits are non-contact.”
• ID: visitors must have a government-issued photo identification with them.
• Children: unaccompanied visitors must be at least 18. Anyone under 18 must come with a parent or guardian, with proof of the relationship (a birth certificate or court-ordered guardianship).
• Search: everyone requesting admittance is subject to a pat-down search, an inspection of belongings and a metal scan; anyone who refuses a reasonable search is not admitted.
• Items: visitors may not pass or try to pass any items to detainees, and may not carry any items into the visitation area. No electronic devices (cell phones, pagers, radios) are allowed in secure areas, and no firearms or weapons of any kind are allowed in the facility.
• Intoxication: visitation will not be allowed if a visitor is or appears to be intoxicated.
• Clergy: clergy may visit at any time but must make prior arrangements with the Chaplain’s Office.

Money, messages and mail

For how deposits work at ICE facilities in general, see how to send money to someone in ICE detention.

Deposits (ICE’s page). “Money is not to be given directly to the detainee.” ICE’s page says money can be placed on the detainee’s account through the website accesscorrections.com, or by money order sent through the U.S. Postal Service to 901 County Road 201, Falfurrias, Texas, 78355, with the detainee’s name on the money order. Funds received in the mail are taken to the processing area and placed in the person’s account, and “The processing officer will provide a receipt for all funds received.” ICE’s page says “Detainees are cautioned not to have cash sent to them in the mail.”

Messages. ICE’s page says: “This facility has tablets,” and points to Gettingout.com for how to send a non-confidential message.

Letters. ICE’s page gives this format:

Detainee Name (A#)
Address
City, State Zip

• The only street address on ICE’s page is 901 County Road 201, Falfurrias, TX 78355, which it lists as the facility address and as the address for mailed money orders.
• ICE’s template shows the A-number in the first line, and the next sentence on the same page says letters “must include the last four digits of the detainee’s A-number, plus the sender’s name and address.”
• Legal mail must be clearly marked as legal mail on the outside of the envelope.
• Refused (ICE’s page): packages, obscene or pornographic materials, personal checks, cashier’s checks, postage stamps or stamped envelopes, any type of food, and periodicals not sent directly from the publisher.
• ICE’s page says incoming mail is screened for contraband and “is not read upon opening, only inspected by the delivering officer”; outgoing mail is routed to the post office within 24 hours of receipt by staff; detainees may buy stamps, and indigent detainees get a postage allowance at government expense.
• When a detainee leaves or is transferred, only legal mail is forwarded; other mail is endorsed “Return to Sender” and returned to the post office.

Packages and travel items. ICE’s page says a detainee may receive items needed only for travel or release, with approval of the ICE Deportation Officer, and asks senders to contact the facility property officer at (361) 325-3340 before sending packages. People being removed from the United States are allowed one small piece of luggage; if the detainee does not already have such baggage, it can be sent or delivered after approval from the Supervisory Deportation Officer. No electronic devices (cell phones, electric razors, laptop computers, radios) are accepted.

Lawyers and immigration court

Attorney visits (ICE’s page). “Legal representatives are authorized to visit their clients during the following hours: 8 a.m. – 8 p.m.” ICE’s page also says:

• Legal calls can be requested by phone at (361) 325-3340, and appointments should be made 24 hours before the desired time. Only legal representatives, legal assistants and interpreters may take part; recording by legal staff is not permitted; an officer stands out of earshot but within eyeshot and knocks 5 minutes before the cut-off time.
• G-28s for people detained here can be filed through ICE’s online ERO eFile platform; facility staff do not have access to it, so representatives should download copies of their submitted G-28 for any in-person or remote legal visit.
• A list of pro bono (free) legal organizations is posted in all housing units and updated quarterly; ICE’s page says it is the detainee’s responsibility to contact an organization for an appointment, and links EOIR’s list of pro bono legal service providers.
• Consular officials may meet their detained nationals at any time; ICE asks that visits be arranged in advance with the ICE Supervisory Deportation Officer for this facility, at (361) 325-3340.
• Delivery bonds: ICE’s page links ICE’s bond page for posting a delivery bond for a person in ICE custody and in removal proceedings.

Immigration court. ICE’s page gives the EOIR information line, 1-800-898-7180, for a matter before the immigration court, and (703) 305-0289 for a matter before the Board of Immigration Appeals. EOIR’s Immigration Court Administrative Control List (updated October 1, 2026) does not name this facility, Brooks County or Falfurrias. Under the Harlingen Immigration Court it lists the Harlingen, TX DHS district office “(including any sub-offices and Ports of Entry, with hearings held at the Hidalgo International Bridge),” Urban Strategies San Benito and the Brownsville International Gateway Bridge; under the Port Isabel court in Los Fresnos it lists the Port Isabel Detention Center, the East Hidalgo Detention Facility and the Coastal Bend Detention Center. Which court handles a case for someone held here depends on the case. See immigration courts in Texas, the Harlingen Immigration Court and the Port Isabel (Los Fresnos) Immigration Court, and BIA-recognized legal help in Texas for BIA-recognized organizations in Texas.

How ICE uses this facility

• Not in ICE’s FY2026 detention statistics. ICE’s FY2026 detention statistics spreadsheet (file dated July 20, 2026 in its name; facility data pulled July 9, 2026), downloaded October 8, 2026, has no row for Brooks County Detention Center or Falfurrias. ICE’s own note on that sheet says the list “is limited to facilities that have a population count of greater than or equal to 1 as the time of the data pull.” That is why this page shows no FY2026 population or length-of-stay figures. It is the only FY2026 statistics file linked on ICE’s detention management page, checked the same day.
• Agreement type. ICE’s December 2016 inspection report says ICE began housing detainees here in 2005 “pursuant to an Intergovernmental Service Agreement (IGSA) (non-dedicated).” ICE’s facility page does not state the current contract type.
• Field office over time. ICE’s September 2007 review was conducted by ICE’s Harlingen, Texas field office; the December 2016 inspection report placed the facility under the oversight of ERO’s Field Office Director in San Antonio; ICE’s facility page, checked October 8, 2026, lists it under the Harlingen Field Office.
• Brooks County agencies on ICE’s 287(g) list. ICE’s 287(g) participating-agency workbook dated October 9, 2026 (downloaded October 9, 2026) lists the Brooks County Sheriff’s Office in Texas twice: a Jail Enforcement Model agreement signed June 11, 2025, and a Task Force Model agreement signed June 12, 2025. It also lists the Falfurrias Police Department with a Task Force Model agreement signed November 4, 2025. The list does not name the Brooks County Detention Center. (The same list has a separate Brooks County Sheriff’s Department in Georgia, a different county.)
• The county’s own site. Brooks County’s Sheriff’s Office page lists the Sheriff’s Office at 701 E. Rice St., Falfurrias, with jail supervisors at that address and phone (361) 325-3696 ext. 503. That is a different street address from the detention center, and the county’s home and Sheriff’s Office pages, checked October 8, 2026, do not mention the Brooks County Detention Center or its County Road 201 address.

Oversight and inspections

• February 20–22, 2019 — annual contractor inspection: the Nakamoto Group report identified one deficient component in Security Inspections, described as a repeat deficiency. The lead inspector recommended a rating of “Acceptable.”
• February 19–21, 2020 — annual contractor inspection: the Nakamoto Group report identified three deficient components: one in Detainee Handbook, one in Food Service, and one in Security Inspections, the last described as a repeat deficiency. The lead inspector recommended a rating of “Acceptable.”

ICE Office of Detention Oversight compliance inspection, December 6–8, 2016 (report, ERO San Antonio). ODO calls it its “first inspection of BCDC under the NDS 2000” (the 2000 National Detention Standards). ODO:

• reviewed 15 standards and found the facility compliant with eight, with nine deficiencies in the other seven; ODO identified six instances where the facility began corrective action during the inspection;
• cited two deficiencies each in access to legal material and in funds and personal property, and one each in grievance procedures, food service, staff-detainee communication, telephone access, and suicide prevention and intervention;
• found that both suicide-watch cells in the health services unit “are structurally deficient and have objects that could facilitate a suicide attempt,” including towel bars, hooks and light fixtures not flush with the ceiling, and a wall that blocks the view of the detainee;
• found that the facility’s request logbook held no ICE detainee requests (the warden confirmed it covered only U.S. Marshals and BCDC detainees), and that telephone serviceability worksheets had not been completed weekly over the prior three months;
• found that the detainee handbook did not explain how to contact ICE to appeal a grievance decision, how to request an ICE-certified copy of identity documents in a person’s A-file, or how to file a claim for lost or damaged property; the facility began revising the handbook during the inspection;
• interviewed 23 male detainees; ODO says none made allegations of mistreatment, abuse or discrimination, and all reported being satisfied with facility services, including food. ODO also noted that detainees are indirectly supervised in their dorms, with no officer assigned to stay in the dorm.

ICE’s ODO facility inspections page, checked October 8, 2026, lists that December 2016 report and no other report for this facility.

ICE detention review, September 18–19, 2007. ICE’s FOIA library also holds a September 24, 2007 review memo on a detention review conducted by ICE’s Harlingen, Texas field office. It says the facility was “owned and operated by L.C.S. Corrections” and “not currently accredited,” counted 23 standards compliant, 10 deficient and 5 not applicable, and listed deficiencies in classification, the detainee handbook, disciplinary policy, environmental health and safety, key and lock control, post orders, administrative and disciplinary segregation, transportation and use of force. The reviewer recommended a rating of “Acceptable.”

Complaints (ICE’s page). ICE’s page says comments on services can be sent in writing to the Field Office Director, Enforcement and Removal Operations, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 9149 HWY 44, Corpus Christi, TX 78406, the same address it gives for misconduct complaints to the Field Office Director. It also lists the ICE Office of Professional Responsibility Integrity Coordination Center (1-833-4ICE-OPR, ICEOPRIntake@ice.dhs.gov) and the DHS Office of Inspector General hotline (1-800-323-8603, DHSOIGHOTLINE@DHS.GOV). In its contact block, ICE’s page shows a “Field Office Main Phone” of (202) 282-2000, a different number from the (956) 389-7500 it gives for reaching the Harlingen Field Office about a deportation officer.

287(g) agreements in Brooks County

This facility is in Brooks County, Texas (per the U.S. Census Bureau geocoder for the address ICE publishes). ICE's 287(g) participating-agencies workbook, dated October 9, 2026, records 3 agreements with agencies in that county:

Source: ICE, 287(g) program (participating-agencies workbook). A 287(g) agreement is between ICE and the law-enforcement agency; on its own it says nothing about this facility. What each model means · all agreements by state.

Related resources

• Know your rights
• How to send money to someone in ICE detention
• Immigration courts in Texas
• BIA-recognized legal help in Texas
• Other ICE detention facilities in Texas
• All facilities under the Harlingen Field Office
• ICE detention movement data
• All ICE detention facilities

General information, not legal advice. Visiting, deposit, mail and phone rules are set by the facility, ICE and their vendors and can change at any time; details above were checked against ICE’s facility page (updated October 6, 2026) on October 8, 2026. Confirm current instructions with the facility before you travel or send money. For a specific case, contact a licensed immigration attorney or a BIA-accredited representative.