This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/20/us/politics/migrant-death-border.html

The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
Guatemalan Teenager Dies at Border Station While Awaiting Move to Shelter Guatemalan Boy Dies at Border Station While Awaiting Move to a Shelter
(32 minutes later)
WASHINGTON — A 16-year-old Guatemalan boy was found dead at a Border Patrol station in southern Texas on Monday morning, after a week of waiting in holding facilities to be sent to a shelter for migrant children. WASHINGTON — A 16-year-old Guatemalan boy who officials said was sick with influenza was found dead at a Border Patrol station in South Texas on Monday morning, after a week of waiting in holding facilities to be sent to a shelter for migrant children.
A statement by the Customs and Border Protection agency did not identify the teenager, and said the cause of his death was not immediately known. The teenager, identified by officials as Carlos Gregorio Hernandez Vasquez, was the third migrant child — all of them from Guatemala — to die in Customs and Border Protection custody.
He was the third migrant child — all of them from Guatemala — to die in Custom and Border Protection’s custody since December. A fourth, another 16-year-old Guatemalan boy, died last month after being placed in a shelter for young migrants by the Department of Health and Human Services. A fourth, another 16-year-old Guatemalan boy, died last month after being placed in a shelter for young migrants by the Department of Health and Human Services.
“The men and women of U.S. Customs and Border Protection are saddened by the tragic loss of this young man and our condolences are with his family,” John Sanders, the agency’s acting commissioner, said in the statement on Monday. He said the agency was “committed to the health, safety and humane treatment of those in our custody.” “The men and women of U.S. Customs and Border Protection are saddened by the tragic loss of this young man, and our condolences are with his family,” John Sanders, the agency’s acting commissioner, said in the statement on Monday. He said the agency was “committed to the health, safety and humane treatment of those in our custody.”
The boy who died on Monday had entered the United States near the border town of Hidalgo, Tex., on May 13. He was held in a processing center in the agency’s Rio Grande Valley sector until Sunday, when he was moved to a Border Patrol station in the city of Weslaco, about 20 miles away. Carlos entered the United States without his parents near Hidalgo, Tex., on May 13 in a group of about 70 other migrants. An official with Customs and Border Protection, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation into Carlos’s death was in preliminary stages, told reporters that the boy did not show signs of illness in an initial medical screening on the day he was detained.
He was waiting to be sent to a shelter for housing migrant children and teenagers; the statement did not identify where it was located. He was held in a processing center in the agency’s Rio Grande Valley sector until Sunday, the official said. Early that morning, Carlos told agents at the facility he was not feeling well. A nurse practicitioner determined he had influenza and recommended he receive doses of Tamiflu. Border Patrol agents bought the medicine from a nearby pharmacy.
It was not clear if the boy was alone when his body was found, or if he had a previously known medical condition, and Customs and Border Protection officials did not immediately respond to questions for clarity. The agency said it was investigating his death and the circumstances around it. Later Sunday, Carlos was moved to a Border Patrol station in Weslaco, about 20 miles away, where he could be separated, the official said. He was found dead on Monday morning, an hour after a welfare check.
“There must be an independent investigation into this child’s death,” Ashley Houghton, tactical campaigns manager at Amnesty International USA, said in a statement. “It is dangerous and cruel to detain people, particularly children, in crowded and unsanitary conditions for seeking protection. The administration must respect human rights by ending detention of children.” Officials said Carlos was given a diagnosis of Influenza A, but it was not clear if he was specifically tested for the illness, and officials did not respond to questions for clarification.
The boy’s death highlights the dangerous trek that migrants endure to reach the United States border from Central America. Earlier this month, a 10-month-old baby was found dead in the Rio Grande after a raft carrying migrants overturned near the Texas border. In January, agents at an immigration processing facility in McAllen, Tex., said they were unable to isolate migrants with transmittable illnesses, such as influenza or chickenpox. The facility is a giant open warehouse, and chain link fencing separates groups of people. Instead, the agents said, the sick individuals could be moved to other stations, like Weslaco.
That is what happened with Carlos, who was held in a processing center in McAllen.
Kathryn Hampton, a network program officer for Physicians for Human Rights, said the case illustrated the need for Congress to enact laws requiring what she called appropriate medical screening and care by Customs and Border Protection officials and limits to the length of time that children can be detained “in order to prevent further deaths.”
“We need answers from U.S. Customs and Border Protection on the medical screening and treatment provided to this 16-year-old boy before his death,” Ms. Hampton said.
Officials refused to say if Carlos was alone in the holding cell, or if anyone was with him when he died, citing open investigations by the agency and the F.B.I. It was also unclear how much medicine Carlos received or if nurses at the Weslaco station had checked on him after he was given it.
The boy’s death highlights the dangerous trek that migrants endure to reach the United States border from Central America. This month, a 10-month-old child was found dead in the Rio Grande after a raft carrying migrants overturned near the Texas border.
The deaths also underscore the medical risks that children face in Border Patrol facilities, which have been pushed beyond capacity in recent months as the number of migrants has surged.The deaths also underscore the medical risks that children face in Border Patrol facilities, which have been pushed beyond capacity in recent months as the number of migrants has surged.
Customs and Border Protection officials in April detained 109,144 migrants at the southwestern border, including at its legal ports of entry — the highest total since 2007. Customs and Border Protection officials detained 109,144 migrants in April at the southwestern border, including at its legal ports of entry — the highest total since 2007.
To ease the overflow at the stations, the Department of Homeland Security has begun busing migrants to other facilities along the border, and just last week began flying immigrants from Texas to California to be processed. The department, which is the parent agency of Customs and Border Protection, has also built tent cities in Texas to house migrant families and children. To ease the overflow at the stations, the Department of Homeland Security has begun busing migrants to other facilities along the border, and just last week, it began flying immigrants from Texas to California to be processed. The department, which is the parent agency of Customs and Border Protection, has also built tent cities in Texas to house migrant families and children.
Customs and Border Protection officials are responsible for detaining and processing migrants after they cross the border, and then turning over children and teenagers to the custody of Health and Human Services to be placed in shelters. Customs and Border Protection officials are responsible for detaining and processing migrants after they cross the border, and aim to turn over the children and teenagers to the Department of Health and Human Services’s custody within 72 hours to be placed shelters.
But space is also limited in those facilities, causing migrants to remain detained in Border Patrol centers for longer than usual. On Sunday, the same day Carlos was moved to Weslaco, he was designated a bed in a shelter managed by the department. Customs and Border Protection officials referred questions to the Department of Health and Human Services when asked about the delay in moving Carlos to the shelter. A department spokesman did not answer questions regarding why it took six days to find a bed for Carlos.
A court ruling that prohibits the government from detaining children for more than 20 days has also forced the Border Patrol to release migrant families into the United States as they wait for their immigration hearings.