Senators decry surge in ICE detention deaths, cite poor medical care
WASHINGTON— Detainees in Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facilities across the country are going without medication for serious health conditions, suffering miscarriages while shackled and dying in record numbers, a group of U.S. senators said.
One letter In a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and ICE top official Todd Lyons on Friday, 22 Democratic lawmakers claimed the “dramatic” increase in deaths in federal immigration custody is a “clear byproduct” of the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda and rapid expansion of detentions.
“Every death in ICE custody is a tragedy, and based on evidence from agency records, 911 calls, and medical experts, many could have been prevented without the decisions of this Administration,” the senators wrote. The letter, released Tuesday, was led by Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin and signed by California Sen. Alex Padilla.
They suggested that at least 32 people would die in ICE custody in 2025. That’s three times the previous year’s total and more deaths than recorded during the entire Biden administration. ICE has reported seven deaths so far this year, plus seven deaths in December alone.
In the letter, senators requested detailed information about the agency’s death investigations, medical standards and oversight procedures.
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, has not responded to the allegations but has repeatedly defended its detention standards. ICE said in a statement that it is “committed to ensuring that all detainees remain in safe, secure, and humane environments,” adding that detainees enjoy medical, dental, and mental health screenings within 12 hours of arrival, full health evaluations within 14 days, and access to 24-hour emergency care.
Lawmakers’ warning comes amid mounting allegations that detention facility staff withheld critical medications, delayed emergency responses and failed to provide adequate mental health care.
The agency recently came under fire after a Texas medical examiner ruled the January death of a Cuban immigrant a homicide after witnesses said he saw it. the guards strangled him to death.
In Calexico, California, Luis Beltrán Yanez-Cruz, 68, died after being detained for more than a month. records show; The Honduran national’s family claimed that he repeatedly reported worsening stomach and chest pain but was only taking pain medication.
The recent increase in deaths coincides with a dramatic expansion of the detention system. Funding for ICE roughly tripled after Congress passed the One Big Good Bill Act. The agency used funds to expand its detention capacity, detaining more than 67,000 people nationwide after reaching a historic peak of nearly 73,000, most of whom had no criminal history, the letter said.
Last week, the Trump administration announced a $38.3 billion partnership with private prison companies, including GEO Group and CoreCivic, to further expand detention space. A planned facility near Phoenix would cost $70 million and cover an area equivalent to seven football fields, according to lawmakers. ICE also reopened facilities previously closed due to chronic staffing shortages and medical concerns.
Concerns about conditions have spread to California. Padilla and Senator Adam Schiff last month toured a non-profit detention center in California City after reports of unsafe facilities, inadequate medical care and limited access to lawyers.
“This is the tragic consequence of a system’s failure to perform its most basic duty of care,” Padilla said in a statement, citing reports of mold in food, contaminated drinking water and barriers to medical care.
A federal judge recently gave instructions to the administration providing adequate health care at the facility and better access to lawyers, it concluded that detainees would likely “suffer irreparable harm” without court intervention.
In their letter, the senators argued that the rapid growth of the detention system has outstripped oversight and accountability. They cited internal audits documenting violations of detention standards, allegations that ICE failed to pay third-party health care providers for months, and analyzes of 911 calls from large facilities about repeated cardiac events, seizures and suicide attempts.
“Instead of accepting responsibility for deaths in government custody and providing detailed facts about the circumstances of each death, the Department of Homeland Security sought to tarnish the reputation of the dead individuals by highlighting details about their immigration status and alleged crimes,” the senators wrote. he wrote.
As detention capacity continues to expand, rising death tolls reveal the extent to which the Trump administration has overhauled the immigration detention system, and Democrats say the results are alarming.
The opposition party grew stronger following the shooting deaths of two US citizens by federal agents in Minnesota; This incident coincided with reports of a record number of deaths in custody in December.
The dispute culminated in a partial government shutdown that began Friday when Senate Democrats refused to fund the Department of Homeland Security until the Trump administration agreed to reform the agency.
