NEW: A 43-year-old Cuban asylum-seeker who had gone on hunger strike after becoming frustrated with his immigration case, died of an apparent suicide after months in ICE custody, according to an internal government report obtained by BuzzFeed News.
buzzfeednews.com/article/hameda…
buzzfeednews.com/article/hameda…
ICE officials confirmed the death of Hernandez-Diaz on Tuesday in a news release but provided limited details on the circumstances.
An internal ICE detainee death notification obtained by BuzzFeed News, however, provided additional details on his case.
An internal ICE detainee death notification obtained by BuzzFeed News, however, provided additional details on his case.
Hernandez-Diaz had first entered ICE custody in May and made a claim of fear of being returned to his homeland of Cuba. By June, US Citizenship and Immigration Services officials determined that he had passed a “credible fear” screening, according to the internal notification.
Earlier this year I reported on this trend of ICE detaining those who passed these screenings.
As of August, ICE was detaining nearly 9,000 immigrants who had passed the test, a mark that had been described as “shocking” by some former agency officials. buzzfeednews.com/article/hameda…
As of August, ICE was detaining nearly 9,000 immigrants who had passed the test, a mark that had been described as “shocking” by some former agency officials. buzzfeednews.com/article/hameda…
Hernandez-Diaz requested in August that he be paroled — or released into the US — while he awaited his hearing in immigration court. He was denied.
In September, he again sought to be released. On Oct. 8, the ICE office denied his release once more, the report stated.
In September, he again sought to be released. On Oct. 8, the ICE office denied his release once more, the report stated.
A day later, his case in immigration court was reset to January.
Two days after he was denied his release from ICE custody, the detention center segregated Hernandez-Diaz from the other inmates after he had threatened a hunger strike.
Two days after he was denied his release from ICE custody, the detention center segregated Hernandez-Diaz from the other inmates after he had threatened a hunger strike.
While officers noticed he had been eating meals on Oct. 11 and 12, by Tuesday they told ICE that Hernandez-Diaz had missed his “9th consecutive meal and declared a hunger strike, citing his frustration with the immigration process.”
He was declared dead of suicide shortly after.
He was declared dead of suicide shortly after.
Earlier this year, @JennyJarvie wrote about a lawsuit over the low rate of release rates for asylum-seekers in ICE custody: latimes.com/nation/la-na-a…
@JennyJarvie His wife told @aflores: "He told me he was going to participate in a hunger strike because of the abuse he endured in detention," Gutierrez told BuzzFeed News. "He never said he was going to hurt or kill himself."
@JennyJarvie @aflores She said her husband had been persecuted by the Cuban government for speaking out against its leaders and trying to unsuccessfully leave the country three times, twice in 1994 and once in 2001. They were married for three years.
