If someone you love has been detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, known as ICE, in Massachusetts, it helps to understand how detention works here. Most people detained in Massachusetts are held at a single facility, the Plymouth County Correctional Facility, which holds men. There is no ICE facility in Massachusetts that holds women, so women are usually transferred out of state, and when space runs short, men can be moved out of state too, sometimes within hours. The two most urgent things you can do are find exactly where your person is being held, and get an immigration attorney involved right away.
It helps to understand the nature of this. ICE detention is civil, not criminal. A person is not being held as punishment for a crime; they are being held to secure their presence for immigration proceedings or removal. And unlike criminal court, immigration court does not provide a free, government appointed lawyer, which is why finding legal help early is so important.
One number matters more than anything else through all of this: the Alien Registration Number, called the A-Number. It is a nine digit number assigned to the case, found on immigration paperwork, a work permit, or court notices. Write it down and keep it close, because it follows your person from place to place, and it is the key to locating them, posting any bond, and working with a lawyer.
How to find someone in ICE custody
ICE runs a free public tool called the Online Detainee Locator System, at locator.ice.gov. You can search by the A-Number, which is the most reliable way, or by the person's full name plus their country of birth and date of birth.
A few things make the difference between finding your person and coming up empty. The locator only matches names spelled exactly the way the government entered them, so if you get no result, try different spellings, swap the order of first and last names, and try with and without a middle name. Children under 18 do not appear in the system at all. And there can be a lag, sometimes a day or two, before a newly detained person shows up.
Because people can be moved quickly, sometimes within hours and sometimes out of state, check the locator again regularly. If a search turns up nothing, you can call the Plymouth County Correctional Facility directly at 508-830-6200, or the ICE detention reporting line at 1-888-351-4024. Massachusetts falls under the ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston field office, located in Burlington at 1000 District Avenue, reachable at 781-359-7500.
Where ICE holds people in Massachusetts
The main immigration detention site in Massachusetts is the Plymouth County Correctional Facility, in Plymouth, run by the Plymouth County Sheriff's Department under a contract with ICE. It holds men, including both immigration detainees and people held on other matters.
When someone is first arrested, they are often taken to the ICE field office in Burlington, which is set up for processing rather than long stays, though people have at times been held there briefly before being moved. Importantly, no facility in Massachusetts holds women for ICE, so women are generally transferred out of state. And when the Plymouth facility is full, men may also be moved out of the state, for example to the federal prison in Berlin, New Hampshire, the Wyatt Detention Facility in Rhode Island, or facilities much farther away. Because people are moved often, always rely on the live locator to confirm where your person actually is.
How someone ends up in ICE custody in Massachusetts
How people come into ICE custody in Massachusetts has a particular shape. Under a Massachusetts high court ruling, state and local officers generally cannot hold someone in custody solely on an ICE detainer, which is a request, not a judge's arrest warrant, asking a jail to keep a person so ICE can take custody. Because of that, many people are taken into custody through ICE's own enforcement, including arrests in the community, which have increased during recent enforcement operations.
That said, the Plymouth County Sheriff's Department does contract with ICE to detain people, so a person can still end up in ICE custody after contact with local authorities. If your person was arrested, ask the attorney exactly how they came into ICE custody, because the circumstances can matter to the case.
How the process and your person's rights work
Immigration cases are handled in immigration court, run by a separate agency called the Executive Office for Immigration Review, not by ICE. Massachusetts has an immigration court in the Boston area, and hearings for detained people are often conducted by video from the facility. You can check case status through the court's automated system using the A-Number.
Here is what families most need to know about rights. A detained person has the right to be represented by a lawyer, but at their own expense, because the government does not provide one in immigration proceedings. They have the right to a list of free or low cost legal service providers. They generally have the right to a hearing before an immigration judge, and in many cases the right to ask that judge for release on bond. Some people are eligible for bond, which a judge can set and which can then be paid for release while the case continues; others fall under mandatory detention and are not eligible. One point deserves special emphasis: a detained person should not sign documents giving up their rights, such as a voluntary departure form, without talking to a lawyer first, because signing can waive the right to a hearing before a judge.
How families can help from the outside
Find a lawyer first, and move fast, because the early days matter and a transfer can happen quickly. Massachusetts has experienced immigration attorneys and nonprofit legal organizations, and while some nonprofits provide information and referrals rather than courtroom representation, they can point you in the right direction. Have the A-Number ready when you call.
Track any transfer. Keep checking the locator so you always know which facility your person is in, since money, phone, mail, and visitation all depend on where they are, and women and some men end up out of state.
Learn the facility's system. At the Plymouth facility, social visits are non contact and there are set procedures for adding money, phone calls, and mail. Call the facility to confirm how each works, and start over if your person is moved to another state.
Keep the paperwork organized. Hold onto every document with the A-Number, every court notice, and every receipt, and share copies with the attorney.
Staying connected matters more than anything
Through all of the logistics, do not underestimate the simple power of staying in touch. Detention is isolating and frightening, and it is even harder when a person is moved out of state, away from family and familiar lawyers, and steady contact from home is one of the few things that genuinely helps a person hold on.
Letters and photos are the backbone of that connection. They are something your person can keep, read again on a hard night, and hold as proof that home has not let go, and they can follow your person from one facility to the next. InmateAid can help you send physical mail and photos to your loved one, printed and delivered the right way so it reaches them inside. Use it to send pictures of family, words of encouragement, or simply a reminder that someone is fighting for them on the outside. That steady contact, alongside a good lawyer, is the most practical support you can give while the case moves forward.
Frequently asked questions
Where does ICE detain people in Massachusetts?
The main site is the Plymouth County Correctional Facility, run by the Plymouth County Sheriff's Department under contract with ICE, which holds men. People are often first processed at the ICE field office in Burlington. There is no facility in Massachusetts that holds women for ICE.
What happens to women detained by ICE in Massachusetts?
Because no Massachusetts facility holds women for ICE, women are generally transferred out of state, sometimes far away. Use the locator to find where your person has been taken, and expect that the case may continue in another state.
How do I find someone detained by ICE in Massachusetts?
Use the free Online Detainee Locator System at locator.ice.gov, searching by the nine digit A-Number or by full name, country of birth, and date of birth. The locator can lag a day or two, so if you get no result, call the Plymouth County Correctional Facility at 508-830-6200 or the ICE detention reporting line at 1-888-351-4024. People under 18 do not appear in the locator.
Does Massachusetts cooperate with ICE?
It is limited. Under a state high court ruling, local officers generally cannot hold someone solely on an ICE detainer without a separate legal basis, so many people are taken in through ICE's own enforcement. However, the Plymouth County Sheriff's Department does contract with ICE to detain people.
Can someone be released from ICE detention on bond?
Sometimes. An immigration judge can set bond for people who are eligible, and it can then be paid for release while the case continues. Others are subject to mandatory detention and cannot get bond. An immigration attorney can determine which applies.