Seventy Members of Congress Demand Answers on Reports of Increased Detention of Pregnant Women

Press Release

In a letter to Department of Homeland Security Acting Secretary Elaine Duke, co-chairs of the Women's Working Group on Immigration Reform, Representatives Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-40) and Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) led 68 of their fellow members of Congress in expressing concern about increased detention rates of pregnant immigrant women and recent miscarriages in detention centers across the United States.

"While it is unavoidable that some women who come into Customs and Border Protection (CBP) or ICE custody will be pregnant, especially in light of the high rates of sexual assault women and girls experience on their journey, attorneys and advocates are reporting a marked increase in the number of pregnant women with serious medical concerns coming to their attention in recent months, and a seeming shift in the agency's willingness to release pregnant women once the pregnancy is identified," wrote the members.

"The detention of pregnant women is cruel, high-risk, and almost never appropriate given the danger it poses to the life of both the mother and her unborn child," the members continued. "[R]eports of pregnant women in custody and changes to the agency's use of prosecutorial discretion as prescribed by President Trump's January 25, 2017 executive orders by nongovernmental organizations and the media leave us concerned that ICE has altered or revoked its policies on the detention of pregnant women."

The members are advocating for increased transparency around the treatment of pregnant women in detention and are seeking clarification from DHS on safety procedures, detention numbers and durations of detention for pregnant immigrant women.

Source