MARSHALL, MI (WTVB) – A controversial Michigan congresswoman says on social media she was denied access to the Calhoun County Jail when she made a surprise visit this week to check on conditions for Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees.
Democratic Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib of Detroit made her statements on Twitter Tuesday. She said that as a member of Congress, she should have access to the jail since it has a contract with ICE.
But Calhoun County Sheriff Matt Saxton told the Battle Creek Enquirer that since the county jail has a contract with ICE, a tour has to be set up 48 hours in advance.
Saxton added, “my lieutenant followed procedures, and we just don’t let a group walk into our facility. If she had called me and said, ‘I would like a tour of your facility,’ I would have set it up.”
A spokesman for the congresswoman said she was only talking with four immigrant detainees by phones through a glass window. She claimed on Twitter that one of the detainees has not received medication for PTSD in ten days and that another was sleeping on the floor.
But Saxton told the Enquirer he has not gotten any complaints from Tlaib after she visited the facility.
