THE DETENTION FILES geogroupwatch.org, a case file from The Detention Files
CASE FILE

The GEO Group, on the record.

NYSE: GEO, Boca Raton, Florida. Founder George Zoley returned as CEO in March 2026. About a third of all ICE detainees are held in GEO facilities and about half of GEO's revenue is ICE money.

27,900listed ICE beds across 24 facilities in 12 states
$8.88Bfederal prime-contract obligations, FY2008 to FY2026
$976MFY2026 obligations, the largest single-company year in the file
$4.4M+GEO Reentry payments to MAGA Inc. since Oct 2025
$254M2025 net income, a company record; Q2 2026 revenue $732.1M, +15%
DECISION POINTS

Two renewals in six weeks, then the California cliff.

OCT 15, 20260days

Aurora, CO: $73.7M task order under the 2022 IDIQ expires. Colorado's tuberculosis suit and the Menocal forced-labor class action both run through this facility.

OCT 27, 20260days

Tacoma, WA: $63.2M bridge order ends. State inspection and wage rulings stand pending two Supreme Court petitions.

DEC 19, 20260days

Adelanto ($107.7M) and Mesa Verde ($76.9M) single-year orders end the same week, under a federal conditions injunction at Adelanto.

YEAR-END 2026Q42026

Big Horn, CO (1,188 beds) and Rivers, NC (1,320 beds) scheduled to open; only $15.7M of Big Horn's first year is funded.

Source: USAspending award file (Sept 5, 2026); Colorado AG statement (Aug 20, 2026); GEO releases (Jul 13 and Jul 29, 2026).

AWARDS AND PAYMENTS

The ledger.

Sept 30, 2025ISAP V monitoring contract to BI Inc. (GEO)Weeks later, GEO Reentry's first $1,000,000 to MAGA Inc.POGO; Biometric Update
Mar 9, 2026GEO Reentry to MAGA Inc.: $1,000,000Same day the Washington Post reported GEO shut out of $426M in new ICE business; awards resumed later in 2026.Daily Beast / PunchUp; Migrant Insider
Jul 13, 2026Big Horn, CO: 5-year award, about $85M a year, $528.7M ceiling$1,000,000 to MAGA Inc. three days later, July 16.NYT (Aug 21, 2026)
Jul 29, 2026Rivers, NC: 5-year award, about $80M a year$413,000 to MAGA Inc. two days later, July 31.NYT; MS NOW; The Lever

Discipline: timing, scale, and concentration are documented; causation is not alleged. The White House denies any link. The ask is a DHS OIG audit.

Open the full door file
THE REVOLVING DOOR

Four ICE leaders, one employer.

  • David Venturella, GEO executive 2012 to 2022 and paid consultant after, now acting ICE Director.
  • Tom Homan, paid GEO Care consultant before January 2025, now White House Border Czar; helped hire Venturella.
  • Matthew Albence, Acting ICE Director 2019 to 2020, GEO SVP since 2022.
  • Daniel Ragsdale, ICE Deputy Director, GEO executive since 2017.
  • Daniel Bible, ICE's top detention official, to GEO days before the 2024 election.
  • Julie Myers Wood, former head of ICE, GEO board since 2014.

Source: NPR via WXXI (Jun 3, 2026); POGO; Warren letter (May 27, 2026).

All eight, with portraits, in Exhibit 12
DEATHS AND CONDITIONS

The record, by facility.

Delaney Hall, NJ1,000 beds; 15-year award

Three medical-emergency deaths in eight months. An ambulance held at the gate (Brutus, Dec 2025); medication reportedly denied (Lopez-Cornejo, Aug 2026). Investigation found contaminated food, extreme temperatures, overcrowding, and an active tuberculosis case; state inspectors repeatedly denied entry; New Jersey civil rights investigation open. sources

Adelanto, CA1,940 beds

Four deaths from September 2025 to March 2026. Population rose from 7 in 2023 to 1,570 in 2025 while staffing did not keep pace. Federal injunction July 16, 2026: 24-hour clean water, adequate meals, hygiene supplies, medical care. Ayala-Uribe family suit against GEO and Wellpath. sources

North Lake, MI1,800 beds

Ten months of documented care denials and delays; detainees told to pay for prescriptions; one death (Dec 2025) with no answers to the congressional inquiry; about 300 men began a hunger strike April 21, 2026. sources

Tacoma, WA1,575 beds

3,500 detainee complaints and 229 sexual abuse reports over ten years, most with no incident review; state inspectors turned away about ten times; court sided with the state July 9, 2026; $23M wage judgment stands. sources

Aurora, CO1,532 beds

Detainees placed in solitary confinement for refusing to clean common areas (Menocal, class of about 50,000). GEO refused for two months to share tuberculosis case information; Colorado sued August 19, 2026. sources

Basile, LA1,000 beds

A GEO officer pleaded guilty to sexual abuse of a detained woman, 36 months. A CRCL complaint names a former assistant warden; no supervisor charged. sources

Karnes, TX1,328 beds

Resumed family detention in 2025; children's cases documented alongside Dilley in the Flores monitor record. sources

Voice rule: names with dignity; family consent before stories or photos. Detention Kills counts at least 45 deaths at GEO facilities over the company's ICE history.

IN COURT

Litigation tracker.

MatterWhat it decidesStatus
Nwauzor v. GEO; Washington v. GEOState minimum wage applies to detained workers: $17.3M to 10,000+ class members and $5.9M to the State, plus injunctionAffirmed; cert pending 25-828
GEO Group v. MenocalContractors cannot take an immediate appeal from denial of derivative immunity; first forced-labor class action headed to trial, about 50,000 membersClass proceeding, D. Colo.
GEO Group v. InsleeWashington's health, safety, and inspection laws upheld; states may regulate the operator as a businessCert pending 26-71
Colorado v. GEO GroupFirst state AG suit enforcing a public-health (TB) order against an ICE contractorFiled Aug 19, 2026
L.T. v. ICE (Adelanto)Preliminary injunction on water, meals, hygiene, and medical care; Fifth Amendment claims likely to prevailOrder in force, Jul 16, 2026
New Jersey: DOH v. GEO; Newark v. GEO; AG investigationInspection access, occupancy, and medication practices at Delaney HallPending; mediation May 2026
Ayala-Uribe family v. GEO and WellpathWrongful death, AdelantoPending
City of Portland v. GEOUnpaid Clean Energy Surcharge taxes (about $48K); municipal tax enforcement as a leverPending, Multnomah Cty.

Note: postures compiled September 1, 2026; check the docket before public use. The amicus window on the two cert petitions is the near-term coalition opportunity.

INVESTORS

Who holds GEO.

~15%BlackRock, 20.6M shares (May 2026)
~10%Vanguard, 13.6M shares (2026 proxy)
~2%Insiders, led by CEO George Zoley
$30M+2025 litigation cost disclosed in the 10-K

Source: GEO DEF 14A (2026); Fintel (Aug 2026). Market cap about $4.5B (Aug 2026, derived); share price 2.2x from its low ($12.51 to $33.15).

Open the owners file

Aurora's renewal decision is weeks away.

Tell the officials who fund it, and the shareholders who finance it, that you are watching.