Anchorage Correctional Complex — State prison holding ICE detainees under USMS contract
Overview
The Anchorage Correctional Complex (ACC), operated by the Alaska Department of Corrections, serves as the primary ICE detention facility in Alaska. ICE detainees are held in the Cook Inlet Pretrial unit, a roughly 450-bed facility that is part of the larger complex. Alaska DOC receives $223.70 per detainee per day under an existing contract with the U.S. Marshals Service/DHS.
Key Events
June 2025: Out-of-State Transfer Crisis
On June 8, 2025, ICE flew 42 men from the Northwest ICE Processing Center (Tacoma, WA) to the ACC to relieve overcrowding. The men came from 22 countries. Two were transferred back to Washington state immediately; 40 remained. After approximately one month, 35 remaining detainees were transferred out of state (by July 1, 2025).
Conditions Complaints
Attorneys testified before the Alaska House Judiciary Committee (June 20, 2025) that detainees experienced:
- Overcrowding: 3 people per cell
- Lengthy lockdowns despite no criminal charges
- Overuse of handcuffs
- Limited attorney/family access — calls denied or restricted
- Strip searches after attorney visits
- Use of force by DOC staff
- Language barriers — communication access inadequate
The ACLU of Alaska sent a letter to state AG Treg Taylor demanding that ICE detainees not be held more than 72 hours unless conditions improved.
Ongoing Use (2025-2026)
The facility continues to hold ICE detainees arrested within Alaska (as opposed to the June 2025 overflow event). From January 2025 through mid-January 2026, 99 people were held in Alaska jails on behalf of ICE, with ACC as the primary holding location.
Legal Framework
Alaska DOC describes itself as a “downstream agency” carrying out a contractual obligation with DHS/ICE to temporarily house detainees. The arrangement predates the 2025 enforcement surge — it exists under a general federal detainee contract with the U.S. Marshals Service.
Why It Matters
ACC represents an unusual model: a state-run correctional facility being used for immigration detention, with conditions designed for criminal custody applied to civil immigration detainees. The June 2025 overflow event demonstrated that Alaska’s remoteness does not insulate it from the national detention capacity crisis — ICE actively flew detainees TO Alaska to relieve pressure elsewhere.
Sources
- ICE.gov: Anchorage Correctional Complex listing
- ADN: Under deal with ICE, Alaska jails holding 40 immigration detainees (Jun 9, 2025)
- Alaska Beacon: 42 men flown in (Jun 11, 2025)
- ADN: Advocates say ICE detainees face harsh conditions (Jun 17, 2025)
- Alaska Beacon: ICE transfers detainees, questions remain (Jul 2, 2025)
- Alaska Public: Alaska holds migrants in ‘punitive conditions’ (Jun 23, 2025)