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Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Feds Not Faulted in Immigration Detainee's Death in ABQ in 2006
By Eileen Sullivan
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The federal government was not negligent in two 2006 immigration detainee deaths, but officials can do a better job overseeing detainees' medical treatment, an internal review concluded.
The Homeland Security Department's internal watchdog investigated two specific detainee deaths to see if the government did everything it was supposed to do. The report was issued Tuesday amid ongoing accusations that the agency with oversight of immigrant detainees Immigration and Customs Enforcement has provided insufficient and in some cases negligent medical treatment for immigrant detainees over the past five years. This issue has been raised for years by human rights groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union.
Investigators with the Homeland Security inspector general looked at two deaths and described these circumstances:
In April 2006, a detainee was being held in a county detention center in St. Paul, Minn., and died of a brain infection caused by a pork tapeworm, known as neurocysticercosis which affects many Latin American immigrants. While in detention, the detainee had reported a series of headaches, which were treated with aspirin, per the detention center's policy. The case review showed that the detainee's head injury 10 days before the death called for expedited transportation to a hospital, which the detainee did not receive; in addition, the detainee did not receive a physical exam within 14 days of arriving at the detention center, which is an ICE requirement.
Neither of these oversights, however, contributed to the detainee's death, according to the investigation. However, records showed that four years earlier the mother of the detainee had surgery to treat "eggs of bugs inside her head," as explained by the detainee. Investigators say this could have been a clue for caretakers to ask more questions because if one family member has this condition, other family members should also receive treatment. Asking the detainee medical screening questions could help identify potentially life-threatening conditions, the report said.
In September 2006, a detainee at an Albuquerque correction center run by a private company died from pancreatic cancer that spread to other parts of the body. Hospital records showed that the detainee's cancer was at an advanced stage when the detainee arrived at the detention center, but medical examinations at the center did not mention the condition. After complaining about stomach pain, the detainee received antacid tablets. Investigators were told that sick calls were not responded to quickly at the detention center, and detainees with chronic conditions did not all receive regular care.
ICE needs to improve oversight at detention facilities to improve detainee care, the report found. And in the future, ICE should make sure all detainee deaths are reported to the state governments and appropriate federal agencies.
"ICE is pleased that the outside report corroborates our position that the deaths investigated were not at the fault of ICE nor could they have been prevented," ICE spokesman Brandon Montgomery said Tuesday. The head of ICE has already directed detention centers to immediately report detainee deaths to the appropriate state and federal agencies.
But the ACLU does not think the inspector general investigation is enough, because it did not investigate 31 of 33 reported deaths between Jan. 1, 2005 and May 31, 2007. Gouri Bhat, the ACLU's national prison project's counsel, said ICE has not provided information on most of these deaths. The ACLU recently filed a federal lawsuit to require the government to turn over information about deaths during ICE custody.
ICE spends $100 million a year on detainee health care which is twice as much as it spent a few years ago. Since ICE was formed in 2003, 71 people out of 1.5 million have died in its custody.
"Every death in custody any death in custody is a regrettable, sad occurrence," ICE spokeswoman Kelly Nantel said in May. "It is not an indication of a broken system."
In April, the federal government acknowledged it was negligent in the death of an immigrant whose cancer went undiagnosed for nearly a year while he was in custody.
Copyright ©2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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