Phelps County Jail — Holdrege, Nebraska

Phelps County Jail is an ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) detention facility located in Holdrege, Nebraska. It falls under the St. Paul Field Office ERO field office area of responsibility.

Facility quick reference

What Phelps County Corrections says about the facility

The county’s own Phelps County Corrections page says (checked October 19, 2026):

• Size and history: Phelps County opened a 51-bed correctional facility in 2004, replacing a 16-bed facility built in 1913.
• Who is held: the county says it has active contracts with the Department of Homeland Security to hold immigration detainees, with the U.S. Marshals Service, and with the Nebraska Department of Corrections to hold prison inmates, and that it houses pre-trial and sentenced county inmates from Phelps County and surrounding counties “as needed.”
• Contractors: food service by Summit Food Service, inmate phone service by Encartele, commissary by Trinity, and medical services through Advanced Correctional Healthcare.
• Phones: the county says all inmate calls through Encartele “are subject to monitoring and recording”; it lists 308-995-3129 for an attorney who requires a privileged call, and Encartele’s main support line as 866-476-6723.

How to locate or contact a detainee

ICE’s Online Detainee Locator System at locator.ice.gov finds people in ICE custody. A search takes the person’s A-number (Alien Registration Number) and country of birth, or their full name, country of birth, and date of birth.

ICE publishes two different numbers for this facility. To ask whether someone is held here, ICE lists (308) 995-5692. To leave an urgent message for a detainee, ICE lists (402) 987-2170 and asks the caller to give the detainee’s full name, alien registration number (A-number), and the caller’s own name and a phone number where they can be reached; the facility passes the message on. Detainees cannot receive incoming calls — they place outgoing calls themselves. ICE asks callers to have the person’s biographical information ready (full legal name and any aliases, date of birth, and country of birth). ICE says the detainee-information line (308) 995-5692 takes calls between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Thursday (checked October 16, 2026).

Sending mail, commissary funds, and personal items

Each facility publishes its own exact format for letters and packages sent to a detainee (this facility’s rule is listed below). ICE publishes each facility’s mail rules on its facility page at ice.gov. This facility’s own ICE page says incoming mail “is not read upon opening, only inspected by the delivering officer” and that detainees may seal their own outgoing letters. ICE’s national standard allows more than that. Under ICE’s National Detention Standards, Revised 2019, §5.1(E), incoming general mail is opened and inspected for contraband, and outgoing general mail may be inspected and read if it is addressed to another detainee or staff have reason to believe it threatens the facility’s security or order, endangers someone, or could facilitate criminal activity. Only special correspondence — mail to or from attorneys and other legal representatives, courts and judges, government attorneys, embassies and consulates, the President and Vice President of the United States, members of Congress, the Department of Justice (including the immigration courts), DHS (including ICE/ERO, IHSC, CRCL and the DHS Inspector General), grievance administrators, and the news media — may not be read or copied by staff. Incoming special correspondence is inspected for contraband in the detainee’s presence; outgoing special correspondence is not opened, inspected or read, and if a need exists, any inspection takes place in the detainee’s presence. The standard limits any inspection to detecting physical contraband and confirming that enclosures qualify as special correspondence. Mail counts as special correspondence only if the envelope unambiguously identifies the title and office of the sender (incoming mail) or of the addressee (outgoing mail). Under that standard, an ordinary letter does not get the no-reading protection that special correspondence gets. Rules for commissary (account) deposits and permitted personal items vary by facility, and so does the number that handles them — ICE names a separate facility mail clerk on some facility pages. ICE publishes the deposit route, the accepted form of payment, and who to call in the Sending Items to Detainees section of this facility’s own ICE page (linked above).

What ICE publishes for this facility’s mail, money, and packages

ICE’s page for Phelps County Jail (page updated 08/06/2026; checked October 16, 2026) says:

• Letters must include the last four digits of the detainee’s A-number (File Number), plus the sender’s name and address. All incoming mail is subject to screening for contraband. Outgoing mail is routed to the post office within 24 hours of receipt by facility staff, and a mail pick-up and delivery schedule is posted in all housing units.
• Stamps: detainees may buy them; indigent detainees (those with no means of financial support and no funds in their facility account) get a postage allowance at government expense.
• Money by mail: funds that arrive in the mail are taken to the processing area and placed into the detainee’s account, and the processing officer gives a receipt for all funds received. ICE adds that detainees “are cautioned not to have cash sent to them in the mail.”
• Packages: ICE’s page says to contact the Omaha, NE ERO Sub-office at (402) 536-4929 before sending one. A detainee may receive only items determined to be necessary for the sole purpose of travel or release from custody, with the ICE Deportation Officer’s approval.
• Luggage for removal: one small piece is allowed; if the person has none, luggage can be sent or delivered after approval from the Supervisory Deportation Officer. No electronic devices (cell phones, electric razors, laptop computers, radios, etc.) are accepted.
• Transfers and departures: only legal mail is forwarded; general correspondence is endorsed “Return to Sender” and returned to the post office.
• Electronic messages: ICE says the facility has computer access and directs non-confidential messages to the Phelps County Sheriff’s Office, 715 5th Avenue Suite 20, Holdrege, NE 68949.
• County list of allowed items: the county’s Phelps County Corrections page, which covers all inmates and does not single out ICE detainees, lists these items as allowed to be mailed or brought to the facility (checked October 19, 2026): religious items (a Bible from a vendor only; a crucifix with no stones), money, eyeglasses, contacts or an inhaler, a wedding ring with no stones, unopened legal mail, and items approved by Administration. It says items for a specific inmate “must come directly from a vendor”; approved items are logged and given to the inmate, and unapproved items are placed in the inmate’s property. ICE’s own package rule for detainees is the one above.

Visiting in person

• Friends and family: Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., excluding holidays (checked October 16, 2026). All family or other social visits are non-contact.
• Search: everyone requesting admittance to the facility or the visitation area is subject to a pat-down search, an inspection of belongings and a metal scan. Anyone refusing to cooperate with a reasonable search is not admitted.
• Not allowed: firearms or weapons of any kind; electronic devices (cell phones, pagers, radios, etc.) in the secure areas; passing or attempting to pass any items to detainees; carrying any items into the visitation area. Visitors who are or appear to be intoxicated are not allowed to visit.
• Consular officials may meet their detained nationals at any time. ICE requests that, to the extent possible, they make prior arrangements with the ICE Supervisory Deportation Officer, (402) 536-4929, and bring appropriate credentials.
• Clergy may visit at any time but must make prior arrangements with the Chaplain’s Office.
• Parking: free public parking is available at the facility.

Legal access, attorneys, and immigration court information

Detainees have the right to speak with an attorney, and attorney–client visits and calls are confidential. EOIR’s automated hotline, 1-800-898-7180, gives information about a case before the immigration court (EOIR); it asks for the A-number. For a matter before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), the main line of EOIR (the Justice Department agency the BIA belongs to) is (703) 305-0289. Applications for relief from removal must be filed directly with the immigration court handling the case. For a person who cannot afford an attorney, the immigration court can provide a list of pro bono legal service providers — see the related resources below.

Booking legal visits, case information, and the Deportation Officer

ICE’s page for this facility says (checked October 16, 2026):

• Attorney visits: legal visitors with proper identification can visit at any time, in person or virtually. The facility has a contact room and a “phone booth” for video and/or “2 firepads” where an individual can connect in a private holding room. An appointment expedites the process but is not necessary. A G-28 must be on file for attorney visits.
• G-28s can be submitted through ERO eFile. Facility staff do not have access to ERO eFile, so legal representatives should download copies of the submitted G-28 for any in-person or remote legal visit.
• Case information: requests about people detained at Phelps County Jail may be sent to omahadetentiondistlist@ice.dhs.gov. This mailbox does not accept applications for Stay of Removal or Case Appeals.
• Finding a client’s Deportation Officer: ICE directs this to the Omaha ERO Sub-office at (402) 536-4929; a G-28 must be on file for any information to be disclosed. Fax: (402) 536-4814.
• Pro bono list: a list of free legal organizations is posted in all detainee housing units and other appropriate areas and updated quarterly; contacting an organization for an appointment is the detainee’s responsibility.

Feedback, complaints, and oversight

A concern about conditions at this facility or the conduct of an ICE or contract employee can be reported to the ERO St. Paul Field Office that oversees this facility, or in a complaint filed with the DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL). On its own Make a Civil Rights Complaint page DHS publishes one channel — the online portal at engage.dhs.gov/crcl-complaint; CBP additionally publishes, for the same office, the e-mail address CRCL@dhs.gov, fax (202) 401-4708, and the postal address DHS/CRCL, Compliance Branch, 2707 Martin Luther King Jr Ave SE, Mail Stop #0190, Washington, DC 20528-0190. The DHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) hotline is 1-800-323-8603.

This facility’s own ICE page (checked October 16, 2026) adds these channels:

• Comments on service, or a misconduct complaint to the field office: Field Office Director, Enforcement and Removal Operations, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 1 Federal Drive, Ft. Snelling, MN 55111.
• ICE Office of Professional Responsibility (by mail): Director, Office of Professional Responsibility, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 500 12th Street, SW, Suite 1049, Mailstop 5099, Washington, DC 20536-5005.
• ICE OPR Integrity Coordination Center: 1-833-4ICE-OPR or ICEOPRIntake@ice.dhs.gov.

A news media representative who wants to interview someone held here must apply in writing to the Saint Paul, Minnesota Field Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations. ICE says a detainee has the right not to be interviewed, photographed or recorded, and the media representative must first obtain the detainee’s written permission. Media inquiries about ICE go to ICEMedia@ice.dhs.gov. ICE’s page also says: “Ordinarily, live television or radio interviews will not be permitted in the facility.” (checked October 19, 2026)

ICE inspection record

ICE’s Office of Detention Oversight (ODO), within ICE’s Office of Professional Responsibility, carried out Compliance Inspection 2025-001-092 of Phelps County Jail on February 4-6, 2025 (ODO report). Per ICE’s February 2025 inspection report, the findings are organized by the National Detention Standards 2019 major categories, and the report lists the facility under ERO Saint Paul.

Earlier inspections. ICE’s ODO facility inspections page also lists these earlier Phelps County Jail inspections (checked October 19, 2026):

• March 1-4, 2021

• July 19-22, 2021 (follow-up)

• January 31 – February 3, 2022

• August 9-11, 2022

• March 28-30, 2023

• ODO conducted a special review of Phelps County Jail on May 21-23, 2024. ODO report.

• In the May 21-23, 2024 special review, ODO observed hazardous substances stored without perpetual inventories. ODO report.

• In its March 28-30, 2023 special-review report, ODO found six deficiencies in three standards. ODO report.

• In its August 9-11, 2022 follow-up inspection report, ODO found 21 deficiencies in 8 standards. ODO report.

Related procedural resources

• Know Your Rights — what to do if ICE detains you
• EOIR immigration court schedules and procedures
• BIA-recognized legal-aid organizations in Nebraska
• Other ICE detention facilities in Nebraska
• All facilities under the St. Paul Field Office