Thousands of Immigrant Detainees Granted Class Cert. in Forced Labor Lawsuit

A massive group of immigrant detainees allegedly forced to work for little or no pay in a privately-owned detention facility were granted Class certification by a Colorado federal judge.

Lead plaintiffs alleged in their 2014 class action lawsuit that immigrants being detained at the Aurora Detention Facility, a privately-run facility owned by The Geo Group, were forced to work for either no pay or for $1 a day in prison run work programs.

The plaintiffs accused Geo Group of violating the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA), considered an anti-slavery law.

Senior U.S. District Judge John L. Kane certified the proposed Class of immigrant detainees, rejecting The Geo Group’s argument that the individual experiences of the proposed Class Members trump their common experience at the facility.

“Although representatives and putative class members have diverse backgrounds, their circumstances are uniquely suited for a class action,” said the judge in his order. “All share the experience of having been detained in the facility and subjected to uniform policies that purposefully eliminate nonconformity.”

Judge Kane also noted that members of the proposed Class were unlikely to be able to file individual actions and would face additional issues due to the language barrier since most of them are not fluent in English.

“Further, if they were to do so, each detainee would have to litigate the same exact issues regarding Geo’s sanitation policy,” noted Judge Kane in his order. “The class action is the superior method for adjudicating the TVPA claim.”

Two proposed Classes were certified by Judge Kane. One includes up to 60,000 detainees who were allegedly forced to provide sanitation services in the prison while detained for free. The other includes nearly 2,000 detainees who were involved in a voluntary work program that paid them $1 a day.

Additionally, nine named plaintiffs were certified as Class Representatives in the order issued Feb. 27.

“Geo’s Aurora facility is being run on the backs of detainees, with Geo’s profits flowing from abusing this cheap detainee labor,” Class attorney Alexander Hood, director of litigation at Towards Justice, told Law360. 

According to the class action lawsuit, Geo Group policies require immigrants detained at the Aurora facility to complete mandatory chores, like scrubbing floors and toilets for up to six hours a day, without pay.

Additionally, allege the plaintiffs, others who participated in a voluntary work program received nominal sums to complete administrative and maintenance work at the facility. According to The Denver Post, immigrant detainees who refused to participate in the labor were threatened with solitary confinement.

The plaintiffs claim The Geo Group was unjustly enriched by detainee labor and should face the “true costs” of operating the facility.

Judge Kane said the unjust enrichment claim in his order is the basis for the class action claim.

“Many of the putative class members are immigrant detainees who lack English proficiency,” noted the judge. “They have limited financial resources and reside in countries around the world. It is very likely that these claims would not be brought by individual detainees, especially considering the case‘s innovative nature.”

The Washington Post noted that this is the first time a class action lawsuit of its kind has been allowed to move forward.

“The class-action lawsuit could have significant implications for the company, which stands to lose more now than if the lawsuit had moved forward with just nine plaintiffs. The original complaint sought more than $5 million in damages,” notes an article in the Los Angeles Times.

The plaintiffs are represented by Brandt Milstein of the Milstein Law Office, David Seligman, Andrew Schmidt and Alexander Hood of Towards Justice, Andrew Turner of Beuscher Kelman Perera & Turner PC, Hans Meyer of the Meyer Law Office PC, and R. Andrew Free of the Law Office of R. Andrew Free.

The Geo Group Forced Labor Class Action Lawsuit is Alejandro Menocal, et al. v. The Geo Group Inc., Case No. 1:14-cv-02887, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.