detention center

[dih-ten-shuhn sen-ter]

noun

1. a facility maintained by the civil authorities for persons charged with a crime, immigrants awaiting deportation rulings, or sometimes witnesses before a trial.

2. juvenile detention center.

Word History and Origins

Origin of detention center¹

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

Hardie accused the district attorney’s office of carrying out a “vindictive prosecution” against Kaleel, who had already served a year in jail and spent time in a federal immigration detention center after his original plea deal.

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As she stepped out of the SUV that had ferried her to her home in East Hollywood from the Adelanto Detention Center, she already was holding her arms wide to hug loved ones welcoming her back.

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For four months, she was held in the Adelanto Detention Center, which is about 90 miles northeast of the city.

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He had left Petty a voicemail and text explaining that his wife was pregnant in a detention center and that he was really worried about her.

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“It was very scary. She was in pain. So after this really traumatic experience, and her going to the hospital and confirming that they did not see the fetus on the ultrasound — after all of that, they brought her back to the detention center and put her in medical isolation,” Petty said, adding that her client was distraught.

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