An 8-year-old boy from Guatemala died in United States custody early Christmas Day, according to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
An 8-year-old boy from Guatemala died in United States custody early Christmas Day, according to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The boy died just after midnight Tuesday at a hospital in Alamogordo, New Mexico, where he and his father had been taken after a Border Patrol agent saw what appeared to be signs of sickness, according to a news release from the agency.
The boy’s death comes just weeks after a 7-year-old girl from the same country died in Border Patrol custody.
At first, the boy, whom the agency did not name, was thought to have a common cold, but staff at the hospital later found that he also had a fever, according to the agency. He was held at the hospital for an additional 90 minutes for observation and then released Monday afternoon with prescriptions for Amoxicillin, a commonly prescribed antibiotic, and Ibuprofen, which is often used for relieving pain and reducing fever.
On Monday night, however, the boy grew nauseated and vomited, prompting the border authorities to take him back to the hospital, the Gerald Champion Regional Medical Center, where he died, according to the agency.
The cause of death is not known, but an internal review will be conducted, according to the agency. It also said that it had notified the government of Guatemala.
Officials at the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to requests for additional information related to when the boy was brought across the border, the length of his detention or where he had been held.
In a Christmas morning question-and-answer session with reporters, President Donald Trump touted his administration’s immigration policies and demanded further funding for a border wall. While he castigated migrants, the president did not bring up the boy’s death hours earlier.
“So you have drugs, you have human trafficking,” Trump said. “You have illegal people coming into our country. We can’t do that. We don’t know who they are.”
In a brief phone call, Hogan Gidley, a White House spokesman, called the death of the 8-year-old boy “very sad” and said that administration officials were still trying to get a clearer understanding of what had happened to him from the Department of Homeland Security.
Earlier this month, Jakelin Caal Maquin, a 7-year-old girl from Guatemala, died in U.S. custody in New Mexico. Border Patrol said Jakelin had died from dehydration, but her father, Nery Gilberto Caal Cruz, disputed that assertion, saying that he “made sure she was fed and had sufficient water.”
Several Democratic members of Congress responded to news of the boy’s death with sharp criticism of the Trump administration’s approach to the border.
“Heartbroken and sickened by this news,” Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., said on Twitter. “I am urgently demanding more details, but the Trump administration must be held accountable for this child’s death and all the lives they have put in danger with their intentional chaos and disregard for human life.”
Homeland Security officials have struggled to answer questions about how many people have been harmed as a result of the administration’s detention policies. Last week, for example, Kirstjen Nielsen, the secretary of Homeland Security, was unable to answer a question about how many people had died in custody.
“I will get back to you with the number,” Nielsen said after she was pressed by lawmakers during a contentious House Judiciary Committee hearing.
In its statement, Customs and Border Protection said that it would follow a list of procedures that were put in place Dec. 17, just days after Jakelin’s death. Among them is notifying the news media and Congress within 24 hours of a death in custody.
Earlier this year, the administration weathered fierce criticism for zero tolerance policies that led to the separation of some 3,000 children from their parents.
The boy died just after midnight Tuesday at a hospital in Alamogordo, New Mexico, where he and his father had been taken after a Border Patrol agent saw what appeared to be signs of sickness, according to a news release from the agency.
The boy’s death comes just weeks after a 7-year-old girl from the same country died in Border Patrol custody.
At first, the boy, whom the agency did not name, was thought to have a common cold, but staff at the hospital later found that he also had a fever, according to the agency. He was held at the hospital for an additional 90 minutes for observation and then released Monday afternoon with prescriptions for Amoxicillin, a commonly prescribed antibiotic, and Ibuprofen, which is often used for relieving pain and reducing fever.
On Monday night, however, the boy grew nauseated and vomited, prompting the border authorities to take him back to the hospital, the Gerald Champion Regional Medical Center, where he died, according to the agency.
The cause of death is not known, but an internal review will be conducted, according to the agency. It also said that it had notified the government of Guatemala.
Officials at the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to requests for additional information related to when the boy was brought across the border, the length of his detention or where he had been held.
In a Christmas morning question-and-answer session with reporters, President Donald Trump touted his administration’s immigration policies and demanded further funding for a border wall. While he castigated migrants, the president did not bring up the boy’s death hours earlier.
“So you have drugs, you have human trafficking,” Trump said. “You have illegal people coming into our country. We can’t do that. We don’t know who they are.”
In a brief phone call, Hogan Gidley, a White House spokesman, called the death of the 8-year-old boy “very sad” and said that administration officials were still trying to get a clearer understanding of what had happened to him from the Department of Homeland Security.
Earlier this month, Jakelin Caal Maquin, a 7-year-old girl from Guatemala, died in U.S. custody in New Mexico. Border Patrol said Jakelin had died from dehydration, but her father, Nery Gilberto Caal Cruz, disputed that assertion, saying that he “made sure she was fed and had sufficient water.”
Several Democratic members of Congress responded to news of the boy’s death with sharp criticism of the Trump administration’s approach to the border.
“Heartbroken and sickened by this news,” Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., said on Twitter. “I am urgently demanding more details, but the Trump administration must be held accountable for this child’s death and all the lives they have put in danger with their intentional chaos and disregard for human life.”
Homeland Security officials have struggled to answer questions about how many people have been harmed as a result of the administration’s detention policies. Last week, for example, Kirstjen Nielsen, the secretary of Homeland Security, was unable to answer a question about how many people had died in custody.
“I will get back to you with the number,” Nielsen said after she was pressed by lawmakers during a contentious House Judiciary Committee hearing.
In its statement, Customs and Border Protection said that it would follow a list of procedures that were put in place Dec. 17, just days after Jakelin’s death. Among them is notifying the news media and Congress within 24 hours of a death in custody.
Earlier this year, the administration weathered fierce criticism for zero tolerance policies that led to the separation of some 3,000 children from their parents.