The congressional inquiries into the horrific death of Roxsana Hernández while in immigration custody continue to escalate, following Congress member Bennie Thompson’s letter to acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) director Ronald Vitiello seeking further investigation into her death.
An independently run autopsy found that Hernández, a transgender asylum seeker originally from Honduras, likely languished without care for days before she was transferred to a hospital, where she died in intensive care. The forensic expert also found that she had likely been beaten before her death. “The seemingly preventable death of Ms. Hernandez Rodriguez,” Thompson continues, “is just one of 11 deaths at adult immigration detention centers this year.”
ICE is supposed to release an initial public report following any death in its custody. Seven months after Hernández’s death, ICE has refused to release anything, and instead has sought to discredit Dr. Kris Sperry, the forensic expert who conducted Hernández’s autopsy. In a separate letter earlier this month, Senators Kamala Harris (D-CA), Tom Udall (D-NM), and Martin Heinrich (D-NM) also called on ICE to release the report.
“We also request,” they continued, “that ICE and CBP each provide us with complete accounting and documentation of the specific training that their officers, agents, and contractors receive related to the processing, medical evaluation and care, and safety of transgender individuals in custody.” Hernández’s death has been emblematic of the treatment of the most vulnerable populations in immigration custody, especially in the sort of private detention facilities she had been held in.
The Senate also need to take these deaths into account because Vitiello is currently gunning to permanently lead ICE. “These detainee deaths and detention standard violations raise serious questions about the treatment of individuals in ICE custody,” Thompson continued, “particularly especially vulnerable individuals and, more broadly, about your agency’s oversight of contract detention facilities.”