Truth matters. Community matters. Your support makes both possible. LAist is one of the few places where news remains independent and free from political and corporate influence. Stand up for truth and for LAist. Make your year-end tax-deductible gift now.
15 people have died during detention, according to ICE. SoCal House members want answers
A view of the Adelanto U.S. Immigration and Enforcement Processing Center.
(
Chris Carlson
/
AP
)
More than 40 members of the U.S. House, including 15 representatives from California, are demanding answers from federal authorities about the record number of people who died in immigration detention this year.
The letter, sent today to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, follows two recent deaths of Orange County men detained at the Adelanto immigration detention center. LAist emailed the Department of Homeland Security with a request for comment and will update this story if and when we hear back.
- In September, Ismael Ayala-Uribe, a former DACA recipient who lived in Westminster, died in custody shortly after being returned there from a nearby hospital where he had been evaluated for an abscess.
- In October, Gabriel Garcia Aviles, a Costa Mesa resident, died at a hospital in Victorville after being taken into custody during a raid and then being detained at the Adelanto detention center, according to the letter and reporting from L.A. Taco.
Record number of detainee deaths
ICE has reported 15 deaths in custody since January. That’s higher than any year since the agency began publicly reporting detainee deaths in 2018.
Listen
28:16
LISTEN: ICE agents aren't just in public places, they're also in hospitals. Health workers are pushing back
“This is now a systemic problem,” Rep. Dave Min, D - Irvine, told LAist. “It's inhumane, I believe it violates U.S. and international law, and ICE needs to get their act together.”
New data released this week shows immigration officials deported, arrested and detained tens of thousands of people from October through mid-November. The arrests led to a jump in the number of people held in immigration jails, with over 65,000 currently detained nationwide.
Sponsored message
LAist has reported on concerns among health care workers that immigration agents are compromising the care of detained patients at L.A. hospitals.
On Monday, U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia, L.A. Mayor Karen Bass and other local leaders are holding a field hearing and press event in L.A. to discuss alleged unlawful detention and abuses by immigration agents of both immigrants and U.S. Citizens.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our connected community. We are free to tell the full truth, to hold power to account without fear or favor, and to follow facts wherever they lead. Our only loyalty is to our audiences and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen our community.
Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive before year-end will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.
If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive before year-end will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.
If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
