German tourist held indefinitely in San Diego area immigrant detention facility

Overall Reaction

• Many commenters describe the case as horrifying, disproportionate, and a strong deterrent to visiting the US.
• Several explicitly advise foreigners not to travel, study, or vacation in the US, at least under the current administration.

Alleged Visa Violation vs. Overreaction

• Multiple comments point out that she appears to have advertised tattoo appointments in LA on Instagram, matching her travel dates, and travelled with tattoo equipment.
• Some infer she had previously worked in the US under the Visa Waiver Program and suggest this time she may be held for prosecution and banned from re-entry.
• Others stress that even if she violated (or intended to violate) visa terms, this doesn’t justify long-term detention and harsh conditions.
• A number of people note that neither she nor her friend (as quoted) clearly deny the working allegation, which raises suspicion but remains partly unclear from the article.

Detention Length and Conditions

• Central outrage: instead of simple refusal of entry and immediate return flight, she was held ~25 days, including about 9 days in what “amounted to” solitary confinement.
• Conditions described (yoga-mat bed, toilet in cell, food through a slot, screaming detainees) are seen by many as inhumane, especially for a tourist willing to leave.
• One commenter disputes the “horror movie” framing, arguing this is standard short-term jail discomfort, not torture, and criticizes the article as emotional, thinly sourced, and “ragebait.”

Private Detention, Incentives, and Quotas

• Several highlight perverse incentives: private contractors (e.g., CoreCivic) are paid per detainee per day, and the administration has set arrest/detention targets for ICE.
• This is seen as turning migrants and travelers into revenue-generating “headcount” and encouraging unnecessary long stays.

Broader Critique of US Justice and Immigration

• Commenters criticize the US system as fundamentally punitive, not rehabilitative, and especially cruel when applied to people with minor or no offenses.
• Comparisons are made (with varying nuance) to Russia, Syria, and Japan; some emphasize that US practices long predate Trump.
• Others mention lack of legal aid for migrants and coercive plea bargaining as part of a broader pattern of rights erosion and normalized suffering.

CBP Discretion and Travel Risk

• Multiple comments stress that visas and return tickets do not guarantee entry; CBP has broad discretion and can check social media, devices, and emails.
• There’s confusion and concern over why simple denial of entry or expedited removal wasn’t used instead of prolonged detention, which remains unexplained in the thread.