ICE Announces 11 Detention Deaths

On August 17th, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced that a review of records from 2004-2007 revealed 10 previously uncounted deaths of immigrant detainees.  They also reported the passing on August 14th of Huluf Guangule Negusse, a 24 year old Ethiopian national, whose death was the result of an August 3rd suicice attempt at an Florida detention facility. 

These new revelations bring the number of immigrant detainee deaths to 104 since October 2003.  This number is up from the 90 deaths ICE had reported to Congress in the spring. 

In response to these deaths, ICE Assistant Secretary John Morton emphasized the need for, "more direct federal oversight of ICE's detention system."  Earlier in August, ICE had announced major reforms to its immigrant detention system to be implimented in the next 3-5 years. 

MIRA and other immigration advocates do believe that the steps ICE has announced are not sufficient to address the horrible state of our nation's immigrant detention system.  We are pushing ICE to adopt legally enforceable detention standards, something the agency has resisted so far.  We are also encouraging our Congressional Delegation to champion the Immigration Oversight and Fairness Act (HR 1215) and the Prevent Detainee Death and Abuse Act (S 1550) to provide increased Congressional oversight of the immigrant detainee system.