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Chicago Tribune
a day ago
- Chicago Tribune
ICE took her mother. Now, a 6-year-old is left without a guardian or legal path back to reunite in Honduras.
As Gabriela crossed the stage at her kindergarten graduation in Chicago, she scanned the audience, desperately searching for a familiar face. But her mother was nowhere to be found. Still, wearing a pink dress and ballerina flats, Gabriela, 6, smiled and twirled around holding a bouquet on her way home. An older neighbor who sometimes cares for her walked by her side. Just a week earlier, on June 4, her mother, Wendy Sarai Pineda, 39, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement outside an office in downtown Chicago during what was supposed to be a routine check-in, while Gabriela was at school. The little girl doesn't understand why her mother vanished and had hoped her mother would be at her graduation, said Camerino Gomez, Pineda's fiance. 'I told her that she went to get some paperwork ready so that they can be together in Honduras,' Gomez, 55, said. 'And that I will take her to be with her soon.' But Gomez doesn't know if that's even possible. He has no legal guardianship over Gaby, as he calls her. The girl, who is a Honduran citizen, has an asylum case pending. And with Pineda being held at the Kenton County Detention Center in Kentucky before being deported to Honduras, there's no clear way to secure a power of attorney for Gomez to travel with the girl. ICE, he said, has not been responsive to him or the lawyer for the mother and daughter. 'She is afraid that the state or the government will take (Gaby) away from her,' Gomez said. 'She's afraid she'll never see her ever again.' When parents are detained or deported by immigration authorities, their children — many of them U.S. citizens, others, like Gaby, in the U.S. without legal permission — are often left behind to navigate the fallout alone. Some are placed in the care of relatives, while others may end up in foster care. All face the emotional trauma of sudden separation, sometimes compounded by economic instability and legal uncertainty. Reunification is often blocked by bureaucratic hurdles, Chicago advocates say. Despite life-altering consequences, there is currently no federal protocol to ensure that children are reunited with their deported parents. Their well-being is left to chance, in a system that wasn't built to protect them.'An infrastructure for children left behind when their parents are deported does not exist,' said Erendira Rendon, vice president of immigrant justice at The Resurrection Project, an organization that offers legal help for immigrants. 'It makes this heartbreaking situation even harder for families.' Advocates estimate about 20 people, including Pineda, were detained by immigration officers on June 4 following a confrontation involving local officials and ICE agents in the South Loop. According to Gomez, Pineda had received a message to attend an appointment that morning at an office housing the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program, an ICE-run alternative to detention that ensures compliance with immigration processes. The mother, who came from Honduras with Gaby in May 2023 to seek asylum, was not aware that she had a prior deportation order from entering the United States without authorization years before. Still, the Biden administration allowed her into the country with her daughter because she did not pose a threat to the country and had no criminal record, her attorney Elisa Drew said. For the last few years, Pineda had been checking in with ICE. That's what she intended to do June 4. 'She wanted to get to the office early so she could come home early,' Gomez said. 'Instead, she wasn't allowed to leave.'Masked federal agents pulled Pineda and more than a dozen others from the ICE office and loaded them into unmarked white vans as relatives watched, many in tears. She is now being held in Kentucky, awaiting deportation. Many of the detained that day were parents who had been complying with check-ins for years, said Antonio Gutierrez, co-founder of Organized Communities Against Deportations. The parents, he said, are desperate to know how their children are doing. Most have been sleeping on the floor at the detention center because of overcrowding, according to Gladis Yolanda Chavez, another immigrant mother who was detained June 4. There is no clear data on the number of children who have been left behind. Their ages range from newborns to high schoolers. In past administrations, immigrants would be given some time to purchase plane tickets back to their home countries and then escorted to the airport, Drew said. And though that is what Pineda would have wanted to do, she couldn't. 'They were thinking maybe they could leave as a family unit. I thought they would be safer,' Drew said. At home, Gaby keeps asking where her mother went.'She told me that when she sees her mom's clothes, she remembers her and gets more sad,' Gomez said. In recent weeks, immigration attorneys have told the Tribune that ICE has ramped up the visibility of enforcement across Chicago and other sanctuary cities, targeting people at court hearings and during check-ins.'To have a parent taken away suddenly like that … can have lifelong implications for their development and for their socialization — night terrors, screaming, crying uncontrollably,' said Caitlin Patler, an associate professor of public policy at the University of California at who met Gaby after getting engaged to her mother in November, said he would like to take Gaby back to Honduras, but ICE has the child's passport and the power of attorney. After more than two weeks, ICE has been unresponsive, Drew said. Though Gomez has tried to reach out to the Honduran Consulate in Chicago and other organizations, he has gotten little to no response. 'What do I do if Gaby gets sick, if she needs something that requires her parents to be here?' he said. The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, which intervenes only in cases of abuse or neglect, said in a statement that it works with families regardless of immigration status. If a child is found to be neglected and a parent is detained or deported, the agency aims to place them with relatives and reunify them with their parents, sometimes with the help of foreign consulates. The Mexican Consulate visits each detainee at the immigration processing center in Broadview before they are transferred to a detention center to provide a power of attorney or custody letter if they have a child in the country. Other countries, however, do not have that type of structure. Due to the political turmoil, Venezuela, for example, does not have a consulate in the United from the Resurrection Project, urges families to create an emergency family plan that includes discussing with a loved one who can care for the children if the caregiver is detained, and having the necessary documents ready for family reunification. The situation can be even more complicated when parents in the country without legal permission have U.S.-born children, said Jacqueline Stevens, a political science professor at Northwestern University who studies deportation enforcement. Some parents may choose to leave the child in the U.S., even if they are sent to another country, for safety, stability or the promise of a better future. Every situation is different, Stevens added. 'Nobody chooses their country of birth. Nobody chooses their parents,' she said. Gaby didn't choose to be in the U.S. with someone she had only known for a year, said Gomez. Pineda is afraid that in the midst of it all, Gaby will be lost in the system. 'But there's no way she can stay here without her mother,' Drew said. 'She needs to be reunited with her.' Different community groups have collaborated with Chicago Public Schools to create 'sanctuary teams' to help alleviate the anxiety and stress experienced by kids by providing essential resources for families, including medical assistance, clothing, food and mental health support. Some educators expressed concern to the Tribune about that support being cut off during the summer months. Other groups use school buildings as spaces to meet even through the summer, said Vanessa Trejo, a school-based clinician with the Brighton Park Neighborhood Council. During the school year, Trejo worked with a boy whose mom was also detained and deported by ICE. She said it directly affected his ability to focus in class. Trejo met with the student twice a day. He would cry and they would play games. 'I try to sit with him. Just having a physical being around is huge,' Trejo student, who was born in the U.S., was in the process of obtaining his passport so he could be with his mother, she said. As for Gaby, her future is uncertain, Gomez said. Her mother is still in detention, and there is no timeline for when or where she'll be deported. Let alone when she'll see Gaby again. In the meantime, Gaby spends her days with an elderly neighbor, Maria Ofelia Ponce, 74, while Gomez is at work. Other times, Gomez's older daughter and his brother's family help take care of her. 'It breaks my heart to see her alone. To not know what will happen to her,' Ponce said. At Gaby's graduation, as mothers in dresses held their children in their graduation gowns, Gaby's family had a small gathering to celebrate her, hoping to help her feel loved.
Newsweek
30-04-2025
- Newsweek
Migrant Dies In ICE Detention In Florida: What To Know
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A Haitian woman died in the custody of federal immigration authorities on Friday at the Broward Transitional Center in Deerfield Beach. Newsweek has contacted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the GEO Group for comment via email outside of normal office hours. Why It Matters The death raises serious questions over medical care for those in ICE custody. In Fiscal Year 2025, there have been at least 6 deaths in ICE custody. Newsweek has previously revealed allegations of abuse at ICE-run detention centers in California that are operated by CoreCivic and Geo Group, including claims of sexual assault, medical neglect, and mistreatment of migrants. The companies previously assured Newsweek that they take their obligations very seriously and investigate any accusations. A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Los Angeles on October 14, 2015. A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Los Angeles on October 14, To Know Marie Ange Blaise, 44, was pronounced dead at 8:35 p.m. on April 25, according to a press release issued by ICE. Authorities have not yet released a cause of death and said it remains under investigation. Blaise had been complaining of chest pains on Friday, an inmate at the detention center told the Miami Herald. According to the detainee, her blood pressure was recorded at 156, after which she was given medication and told to lay down, said the newspaper. The detainee said they saw her trembling and screaming, "My chest! My chest!" Blaise had been held at the Broward Transitional Center, operated by The GEO Group, since April 5. According to the agency, she was stopped by U.S. Customs and Border Protection while attempting to board a flight from Saint Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands to Charlotte, North Carolina, without a valid immigrant visa. ICE took her into custody on February 14, initially detaining her in San Juan, Puerto Rico, transferring her to a facility in Oakdale, Louisiana, before she was moved to the Broward center in Deerfield Beach. ICE said in a press release that they do not know when or where she entered the county "without admission or parole" from Haiti. Haiti is facing severe political instability and a sharp rise in gang violence, plunging much of the nation into crisis. Armed groups now control roughly 80 percent of the capital, Port-au-Prince, carrying out kidnappings, extortion, and violent confrontations with security forces. The 2021 assassination of President Jovenal Moïse increased the country's political instability, leaving a power vacuum that has yet to be filled. The ongoing humanitarian crisis is worsened by widespread poverty, food insecurity, and a crumbling health care system, displacing over a million people from their homes in search of safety. What People Are Saying Guerline Jozef, executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, an advocacy group, said: "Our hearts break by the unfortunate death of Ms Marie Angie Blaise. Our sincere condolences to her family, loved ones and the entire immigrant community. Her death is a result of cruel inhumane policies and treatment of immigrants. We will continue to push for accountability on behalf of those who unfortunately find themselves detained, trapped without proper care or due process. ICE wrote in a press release: "Comprehensive medical care is provided from the moment individuals arrive and throughout the entirety of their stay. All people in ICE custody receive medical, dental and mental health screening and 24-hour emergency care at each detention facility. At no time during detention is a detained illegal alien denied emergent care." What Happens Next Inquiries into Blaise's death remain ongoing.
Newsweek
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
ICE Detention Center Conditions Driving Inmates to 'Insanity'—Detained Man
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A father of two detained by federal immigration authorities has told Newsweek that the conditions inside the Torrance County Detention Facility are driving inmates to "insanity." David Gomez was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on March 3 while attending a scheduled immigration appointment in New Jersey. Days later he was shipped over 1,000 miles away from his family to New Mexico. Gomez has now spoken out from inside the detention center. "There's so much lawlessness in the administration," Gomez told Newsweek in an exclusive interview. Left: David Gomez along with his daughter, son and mother. Right, Gomez with his fiancee. Left: David Gomez along with his daughter, son and mother. Right, Gomez with his fiancee. Supplied Why It Matters President Donald Trump has pledged to carry out the largest mass deportation operation in U.S. history as his administration looks to remove millions of undocumented immigrants from the country as part of his campaign pledge. The White House has said anyone in the country illegally is a "criminal." Newsweek has revealed dozens of cases of family separation under the administration's crackdown as Trump's iron fist approach to immigration enforcement takes hold. What To Know Gomez came to the United States from Colombia as a child at the age of 5 and became a lawful permanent resident in 2011. He earned a bachelor's degree in business with a minor in marketing, is fluent in four languages, and has consistently held employment while paying taxes and volunteering his time—including fundraising for St. Jude Children's Hospital through his college fraternity. In 2016, while attending college, Gomez was cited for smoking marijuana in his car. Since then, New Jersey has taken steps to dismiss all marijuana-related offenses as part of its decriminalization efforts. Gomez's green card was taken away in 2017 after his marijuana charge triggered immigration proceedings, despite the state-level decriminalization efforts that followed. His immigration status has not been formally revoked, and a final decision on his removal is still pending. In 2021, ICE detained him after he allegedly missed a court hearing tied to a Notice to Appear—a document his family says he never received. Following that, he was placed under ICE supervision and required to wear an ankle monitor continuously for four years until his detention in early March. Gomez responded to a series of questions from inside ICE detention and claimed the prison food was inadequate, and a water fountain in his cell block was broken. The ICE-run Torrance County Detention Facility is operated by CoreCivic. CoreCivic denied the allegations and said the claims are "false." "We provide a safe, humane and appropriate environment for the individuals housed at our Torrance County Detention Facility (TCDF), and we are constantly striving to deliver an even better standard of care," Brian Todd, a spokesperson for CoreCivic told Newsweek. Gomez claims that accessing necessities, especially water, has been difficult in the facility. He said that water is a major issue because the pod, which holds around 60 inmates, is always at maximum capacity. The large jug of water provided runs out quickly, and when it does, they must wait for a guard to request a replacement from the kitchen. "Each pod has a water fountain, but most of them don't work. "Ours worked for the first week that I was here. And then after that, it stopped working and they never fixed it. So we have a water fountain that doesn't work," he said. He also claims he is "scared" of catching a disease from consuming the water inside the facility. "Any claims of the water being undrinkable or not available are demonstrably false," Todd said in response to the allegations. Gomez also criticized the food that inmates are being given, saying it lacks protein and nutrients. "The food is nothing short of terrible," he said "CoreCivic provides three nutritious meals a day that members of staff also often eat," Todd said. However, Gomez claims that he has lost 12 pounds since his detention. He reflected upon how much he misses his family as he remains locked up in detention. He is a father of two, including a 6-year-old son with autism, and the primary caregiver for his elderly mother, who suffers from several health conditions. "I worry about their safety and, you know, how they're getting by and everything. I worry about my fiancee. I didn't get to spend time with her like I should have," Gomez said. "It's costing me $7,000 a month to be detained, I was making about $3,000 a month at my job. Now I'm not making that, and I still have to continue to pay all my bills," Gomez said. His fiancee previously told Newsweek that ICE agents filmed and mocked Gomez while he was moved across the country. "The moment that I got detained and arrested, ICE acted like they just caught America's most wanted fugitive. They were ecstatic about it. And I check in with ICE regularly. So that took me by surprise. "On the way to the plane, when they were taking us and putting us in a line, walking us up to the plane, a lady was filming us. And then there were ICE officers who would stop us and take pictures with us and throw a peace sign, like we were some trophy fish that they were hunting or something like that Newsweek has previously revealed allegations of abuse at ICE-run detention centers that are operated by CoreCivic and Geo Group, including cases of sexual assault, medical neglect, and mistreatment of migrants. The companies previously assured Newsweek that they take their obligations very seriously and investigate any claims. What People Are Saying Gomez told Newsweek: "The conditions here drive people to insanity." "Water is a major issue here," he added. "We only get maybe chicken or some meatballs like once a week or twice a week. But their excuse for giving us protein every day is to give us beans almost every day. We barely get any vegetables and whatever meat that they put in us is processed. We don't get any ham or turkey or anything like that." CoreCivic spokesman Brian Todd told Newsweek: "TCDF gets its water from the City of Estancia, so it's exactly the same water used by residents and businesses in the area. Staff and guests of TCDF regularly drink the water, as well. Detainees have access to 10-gallon water containers that are located in each housing unit. Facility staff refill and sanitize these water containers a minimum of twice a day and at any additional time when requested to do so by a detainee. Detainees also have 24-hour access to potable water from the sinks located within their housing units. This water is tested and approved for consumption monthly by the City of Estancia." "CoreCivic takes great care to offer meals that support specialized diets and cultural preferences. On a daily basis, we provide meals that support religious diets and more than a dozen therapeutic diets. Menus are reviewed and approved on a regular basis by a registered dietitian to ensure appropriate nutrition is provided to those entrusted to our care. What Happens Next Gomez will remain in detention as his family tries to raise money for his legal costs. .
