MCC San Diego
| Location | 808 Union Street, San Diego, California (downtown, across from the federal courthouse) |
|---|---|
| Status | Active (see status note) |
| Classification | Administrative (all security levels) |
| Capacity | 1,300 (design) |
| Population | approximately 556–565 (2026 snapshots) |
| Opened | December 1974 |
| Managed by | Federal Bureau of Prisons |
The Metropolitan Correctional Center, San Diego (MCC San Diego) is an administrative-security federal pretrial facility at 808 Union Street in downtown San Diego, directly across from the federal courthouse. One of the BOP's first-generation high-rise jails (with MCC Chicago and the former MCC New York), its 23-story windowless tower is a downtown landmark — locals call it 'the building with no windows.'
It holds men and women of all security levels, primarily pretrial defendants for the Southern District of California.
Status Note (2026)
MCC San Diego is operating: a PREA audit posted June 12, 2026 describes an active pretrial facility, a September 2026 guide lists roughly 565 people held, and an October 2025 federal court case confirms ongoing operations. Some third-party tracker sites report it 'deactivated June 2026' — no BOP announcement or reputable news source supports that, and the facility was not on the July 1, 2026 closure list [1]. The union fought off a threatened closure once before, in 2022.
Facility
Address: 808 Union Street, San Diego, CA 92101. Phone: (619) 232-4311. Opened December 1974; capacity 1,300; visiting Friday–Monday — call ahead.
Deaths and Incidents
In April 2026, a 24-year-old inmate was found dead at the facility; the death remains under investigation. In 2012, a correctional officer was convicted of sexually abusing an inmate and served 10 months.
In the News
- Inmate death at MCC San Diego under investigation — 24-year-old found dead. FOX 5 San Diego (April 2026). [2]
- BOP facility closures announcement — MCC San Diego not on the closure list. Federal Bureau of Prisons (July 1, 2026). [1]
- BOP orders prison closures amid infrastructure decay and staff shortages — the system-wide context. Prison Legal News (August 2026). [3]
Community Discussions
First-person threads from Reddit (r/prison and similar communities) — useful for what the official sources don't say:
- r/sandiego — 'has anyone seen this building with no windows?' — the facility's local fame
- r/sandiego — MCC San Diego: how much money an inmate needs — practical first-person advice
- r/OnTheBlock — MCC San Diego hiring — staff-side
Notable Detainees and Residents
- José Rodrigo Aréchiga Gamboa 'El Chino Ántrax' — Sinaloa cartel figure; released 2020, absconded, found murdered in Sinaloa
- John Timothy Earnest — Poway synagogue shooter; held pretrial, later life + 30 years
- Fidel and Raul Villarreal — ex-Border Patrol brothers; 30 years for a smuggling ring
See Also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Federal Bureau of Prisons Announces Facility Closures and Operational Changes". Federal Bureau of Prisons. Retrieved November 10, 2026. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "bop20260701" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ "Inmate death at MCC San Diego under investigation". FOX 5 San Diego. Retrieved November 10, 2026.
- ↑ "BOP orders prison closures amid infrastructure decay and staff shortages". Prison Legal News. Retrieved November 10, 2026.