Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center (Formerly LaSalle): Habeas Guide for Families

The ICE locator lists your relative at the Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center. A hearing notice names the LaSalle Immigration Court. A relative who was held there years ago just calls it Jena. All three point to one place: a detention center on Pine Hill Road in Jena, Louisiana, run by GEO Group and once called the LaSalle ICE Processing Center. It has no connection to LaSalle Corrections, the company that operates Jackson Parish Correctional Center.

If you are looking for a LaSalle ICE Processing Center immigration lawyer, sort out the names first, because the petition, the mail and every phone call depend on using the right one. This guide covers what is specific to the facility: who runs it, which court hears petitions from Jena, the immigration court inside, how lawyers get in and what families can do this week. Court-wide rules, from judge assignment to service, are in our guide to habeas in the Western District of Louisiana.

Not sure your relative is still there? Start with finding someone in ICE detention.

Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center at a Glance

The Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center, often shortened to CLIPC, is at 830 Pine Hill Road in Jena. GEO Group runs it for ICE and lists its capacity at 1,160 beds on the company’s facility page. ICE places it under its New Orleans Field Office.

Being held here is civil immigration custody, not a sentence for a crime, even though the building looks and runs like a prison. In October 2026, Verite News described it as a men’s facility while reporting abuse and medical neglect allegations from three transgender women held in segregation; DHS told the outlet the allegations were false. Tell the lawyer early about any medical or safety problem; it can shape what is filed first.

One Facility, Several Names

The building has carried at least three names, and three other local names share part of the old one.

Former Names Families Still See

Older records call it the LaSalle Detention Facility or the LaSalle ICE Processing Center; the Justice Department used the second name when it opened an immigration court there in 2018. A January 2023 DHS civil rights memo notes that the facility had recently dropped the LaSalle name to avoid confusion with an ICE contractor of the same name.

The old names have not gone away. In a May 2026 case, a man held in Jena filed his own petition against the warden of the “LaSalle ICE Processing Center.” The court still identified him as detained at the Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center and ordered a response. A petition that uses the current name leaves no room for an argument over who holds your relative.

LaSalle Parish, LaSalle Immigration Court, LaSalle Corrections

LaSalle Parish is the parish that contains Jena. LaSalle Immigration Court is the Justice Department court inside this facility, covered below. LaSalle Corrections is a separate private company that runs other Louisiana jails holding people for ICE, including Jackson Parish Correctional Center in Jonesboro and Winn Correctional Center in Winnfield. If the locator shows one of those facilities instead, read the matching guide.

Which Federal Court Hears a Petition From Jena

A habeas petition for someone held in Jena goes to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana. The place of detention decides the court; the family’s home state and the location of the immigration case do not. Our habeas corpus and ICE detention guide explains the rule behind this.

Division, Judge and Respondent

LaSalle Parish falls in the court’s Alexandria Division, so petitions from Jena usually get case numbers beginning with 1. That number no longer decides the judge: since September 17, 2026, immigration habeas cases are shared across the district’s judges, as our Western District guide to divisions and judges explains.

The petition should name the warden of the Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center, who has day-to-day custody, and most lawyers also name the responsible federal officials. How to name the warden of a privately run facility is covered in the respondent section of the same guide.

What 2026 Filings From Jena Show

Two public dockets show how handling changed this year. In the May 2026 case above, the magistrate judge told the clerk to mail summonses and gave the government 21 days to respond and the detainee 14 days to reply. In Carrillo v. Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center, filed September 11, 2026, with the $5 filing fee, the court instead sent its standing-order notice on service and scheduling, then assigned a district judge and a magistrate judge on September 27.

Those orders set a timetable, not an outcome. The May petition was filed without a lawyer, and our page on problems with pro se habeas petitions explains where self-filed cases tend to lose time.

The Immigration Court Inside the Facility

The Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) runs the LaSalle Immigration Court at the same Pine Hill Road address, and GEO says an administrative building on site serves both ICE and EOIR. This court handles the immigration case: whether your relative can stay and, when the law allows, whether bond can be set. The federal court decides a narrower question, whether the detention itself is lawful.

A notice from LaSalle Immigration Court therefore does not mean your relative was moved; it usually means hearings take place where they are held. To check dates, enter the A-Number in EOIR’s online case status system or call 1-800-898-7180. On bond, Louisiana law is unsettled in late 2026, and our Fifth Circuit bond hearing update tracks where it stands.

Immigration Lawyer Access at LaSalle ICE Processing Center in Jena

Lawyers can meet clients in person or by video. According to ICE’s facility page, scheduled legal visits take priority over walk-ins, and one visit may not run longer than two hours.

Video meetings are booked through ICE’s ERO eFile system in two-hour blocks. Confidential legal phone calls are booked separately, by email to GEO at visitrequest@geogroup.com, in one-hour blocks. Facility staff cannot see ERO eFile yet, so lawyers are told to bring a downloaded copy of the G-28 they filed. For an emergency, ICE’s November 2025 virtual visitation notice lists (318) 992-7899.

A lawyer in another state can use the same system. Before you hire anyone, our questions to ask a habeas lawyer help you compare.

The First Week: Calls, Mail and Visits in Jena

The general first-week steps are the same at every facility; our page on visiting, calling and sending money walks through them. In Jena, these are the details that change:

• Confirm the location. Call (318) 992-1600 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. with your relative’s full name, any other names used, date of birth and country of birth.
• Send a message. People held here cannot take incoming calls. The facility’s main line is (318) 992-7800, and ICE lists GettingOut for non-confidential messages.
• Mail a letter. Write the last four digits of the A-Number and your own name and address on the envelope. Call the mailroom before sending a package.
• Add money. Use Access Corrections at 1-866-345-1884 or accesscorrections.com, or mail a money order with your relative’s name. Do not mail cash.
• Visit. Family visits are non-contact and the schedule changes by day. Bring photo ID and call before you drive.

If ICE Moves Your Relative Out of Jena

A move to another facility on ICE’s Louisiana list normally keeps a new petition in the Western District, since nearly all of those sites sit in its parishes. The Alexandria Staging Facility is different: it is a short-term site, and the FAQ in our Western District guide explains what a move there can signal. A move to the Angola unit or out of state changes where a new petition is filed.

Only legal mail is forwarded after a transfer, so tell your lawyer the same day. A petition already on file may stay with its court; our page on where to file habeas after an ICE transfer explains why, and our transfer prevention practice handles emergency requests to stop a move.

Frequently Asked Questions

What to Do Next for Someone Held in Jena

The first moves are simple. Confirm by phone that your relative is still there, get the A-Number and arrest date to a lawyer who can book a video visit, and make sure any petition names the Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center and its warden. The right name points the court to the right custodian; the custody history decides whether there is a claim.

Legal Disclaimer: This article is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every immigration case has unique circumstances. For legal guidance specific to your situation, we recommend consulting with an experienced immigration attorney. The information in this article reflects laws and policies as of the publication date; subsequent changes may affect its accuracy. Sources were reviewed as of October 8, 2026.

Sources

1. Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, updated August 6, 2026; accessed October 8, 2026.
2. Virtual Attorney Visitation at the Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, November 2025; accessed October 8, 2026.
3. Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center, The GEO Group, no date shown; accessed October 8, 2026.
4. LaSalle Immigration Court, Executive Office for Immigration Review, U.S. Department of Justice, updated January 5, 2026; accessed October 8, 2026.
5. Executive Office for Immigration Review Opens LaSalle Immigration Court, Executive Office for Immigration Review, July 30, 2018; accessed October 8, 2026.
6. Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center, Complaint Retention Memorandum, DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, January 5, 2023; accessed October 8, 2026.
7. Yan v. Warden Facility Director LaSalle ICE Processing Center, No. 1:26-cv-00835 (W.D. La.), memorandum order via CourtListener, May 5, 2026; accessed October 8, 2026.
8. Carrillo v. Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center, No. 1:26-cv-03533 (W.D. La.), docket via PacerMonitor, filed September 11, 2026; accessed October 8, 2026.
9. ‘It’s torture’: Trans immigrant detainees allege experiencing abuse, medical neglect at Jena immigration detention center, Verite News, October 5, 2026; accessed October 8, 2026.
10. Supreme Court grants review of Trump administration’s mandatory detention policy for immigrants, Associated Press via PBS NewsHour, October 1, 2026; accessed October 8, 2026.