Genaro Garcia Luna, Mexico's former Secretary of Public Security, reported through his lawyers that he suffers “excessive and extreme” prison conditions in several United States prisons, which has hindered his right to defense and the appeal process of his sentence for drug trafficking.

Garcia Luna, who was sentenced in October 2024 to 38 years in prison for collaborating with the Sinaloa Cartel, currently remains in the maximum security prison ADX Florence, Colorado. Since his release from the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn in December 2024, the former official has been transferred to several prisons, including UPS Lee, Virginia, where, according to his defense, he was subjected to inhumane conditions.

According to court documents released by his lawyers, Cesar de Castro and Valerie Gotlib, Garcia Luna has been held virtually incommunicado for eight months. During that period, he has only been able to speak with his legal representatives for three hours.

"In eight months, we have only been allowed three hours of communication with our client," Gotlib wrote in a letter sent to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York. She added that in her years of experience as a defense attorney, she had never faced a similar situation. The attorneys stated that since her release from Brooklyn, Garcia Luna has not received the legal documents for her case, nor has she had access to trial transcripts, motions, or sentencing materials. During her confinement at UPS Lee Prison, she was held in an isolation unit known as "the Hole," reserved for inmates who violate rules, despite the fact that, according to her file, she has no disciplinary infractions in nearly six years of incarceration. In that unit, they report that she was denied the ability to bathe, shave, and eat with utensils, and was only provided with a pair of underwear. As a result, Garcia Luna has lost more than 14 kilos. "She has suffered visible physical deterioration, the result of inadequate nutrition and a lack of basic hygiene," her attorneys told the newspaper Milenio.

Partial Improvement at ADX Florence

Following his transfer in July 2025 to ADX Florence—considered the only “supermax” prison in the United States—Garcia Luna has seen limited improvements. According to his lawyers, he can now shower and eat with utensils, but the lack of communication remains.

“Since July 31, we have scheduled two calls with Mr. Garcia Luna. Neither have taken place. The first was canceled due to an unnotified transfer, and we received no explanation for the second,” de Castro said in a document.

Furthermore, technological restrictions at the prison have prevented Garcia Luna from accessing his legal documents. Authorities recommended sending the materials in physical format, but lawyers point out that this is not feasible. The trial transcript alone consists of 2,043 pages, in addition to other key files.

"Mr. Garcia Luna has not been able to review any pre-trial notes or documents in preparation for his appeal. This has made it impossible to advance the presentation of arguments," Gotlib said.

Given this situation, the defense requested a third extension from the Court to submit opening statements in the appeal process. The current deadline expires in September, but the lawyers are seeking a 90-day extension, until December, to be able to comply with the filing.

“The denial of access to our client has created undue and extreme hardship that has impeded our ability to complete the opening brief,” they stated in the document.

Garcia Luna was found guilty in February 2024 by a jury in New York, which found him responsible for collaborating with the Sinaloa Cartel during his time as Secretary of Public Security in the government of Felipe Calderon (2006-2012). The sentence, handed down in October by Judge Brian Cogan, includes his imprisonment until June 2052.