The Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego enforces a strip-search policy unique within ICE's detention network requiring detainees to fully undress in front of officers—including male officers—after every non-legal visit involving physical contact, regardless of gender or menstrual status. Female detainees reported feeling violated and humiliated. State inspectors also documented overcrowding that has worsened detention conditions, with dirty toilets, detainees forced to sleep on floor cots due to insufficient beds, and complaints about poor-quality food and small meal portions. The facility, which opened in 2015 and was expanded in 2021, holds up to 1,970 detainees and was acquired by DHS in July 2026 for $739 million as part of the Trump administration's effort to expand detention capacity despite California's sanctuary policies.