Trump Admin Said She Was Lying About Stillbirth in ICE Custody. New Evidence Points to Lack of Prenatal Care.
The Trump administration claimed Iris Dayana Monterroso Lemus received “FULL medical, prenatal care” in ICE custody. The post Trump Admin Said She Was Lying About Stillbirth in ICE Custody. New Evidence Points to Lack of Prenatal Care. appeared first on The Intercept .
After losing her stillborn son while detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Iris Dayana Monterroso Lemus's allegations of inadequate prenatal care were dismissed by the Trump administration. Spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin stated that the Guatemalan-born woman received full medical and prenatal care, including an ultrasound and OB-GYN visit.
However, newly acquired federal government documents suggest otherwise, indicating a lack of basic care essential for a healthy pregnancy. An outside healthcare center report described the pregnancy as "complicated by lack of PNC," referring to prenatal care.
A Freedom of Information Act request revealed documents from Monterroso Lemus's visit to the Ochsner LSU Center in Shreveport, Louisiana, after she reported feeling a lack of fetal movement. These documents indicate that she had informed medical staff at Richwood Correctional Center that "this pregnancy didn’t feel right a couple days ago, but nothing was done." Other new records include ICE timelines that show a referral for an OB-GYN appointment but lack any indication of a scheduled or attended visit or an ultrasound.
Monterroso Lemus was deported to Guatemala ten days after the stillbirth, shackled and placed on a plane. The Trump administration has been detaining an increasing number of pregnant women, with ICE holding about a dozen such individuals nationally in a year, according to Eunice Cho, an immigration attorney. During a congressional visit to Louisiana's Basile detention center in April, there were 14 pregnant women in that single facility, exceeding the annual average during the Biden administration.
The administration's actions appear to disregard a 2021 ICE directive that advises against detaining pregnant, postpartum, or nursing individuals, unless release is prohibited by law or exceptional circumstances exist. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., introduced legislation last year to codify federal law regarding the detention of pregnant women, emphasizing that "no one deserves to be treated like this."
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