NEWARK, N.J. (AP) 鈥� U.S. immigration officials said Wednesday that they didn鈥檛 publicly disclose the death of a Guatemalan man who had a seizure at a New Jersey detention center because they weren鈥檛 notified that he died after they sent him to the hospital.
Jose Chajon-Raxon had the seizure July 19, a day after being processed into Delaney Hall, a privately run immigration jail in Newark, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement. DHS officials said Chajon-Raxon was 鈥渢aken to the hospital and released from ICE custody on July 22.鈥�
The department didn鈥檛 say what happened after he went to the hospital, when he died, or whether he was released from the hospital before his death.
鈥淧er ICE policy, when an individual is no longer in ICE custody then ICE will no longer be responsible for monitoring or reviewing deaths that may occur. This is common sense,” the DHS statement said.
This is part of a announced earlier this year in which the agency no longer reports deaths that occur within 30 days of someone鈥檚 release from custody. The move rescinds a 2021 policy implemented by the Biden administration.
U.S. Rep. Rob Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat who has routinely visited Delaney Hall, said the policy change creates a 鈥渓oophole鈥� where the agency can release someone from its custody and then 鈥渃laim it has no responsibility to investigate their death or inform Congress and the public.鈥�
鈥淚CE 鈥� consistent with the entire ethos of the Trump Administration 鈥� is dead set on avoiding public scrutiny and taking any accountability for its failures,” he said.
DHS said in the statement that ICE 鈥渞emains committed to transparency regarding detainee deaths.鈥�
Chajon-Raxon’s death first became publicly known when it was disclosed by Menendez last week following the in early August.
He told reporters that ICE granted the person a 鈥渄iscretionary release鈥� from custody after they were taken to a hospital and lost consciousness, and the person died shortly afterward. At the time, he did not identify the person.
In recent months, Delaney Hall has been the site of by immigration advocates, with demonstrators at times attempting to block vehicles from entering or leaving the facility. Earlier this year, some people held at the jail launched a hunger strike over the conditions, according to Cosecha, an immigrant advocacy group.
The facility is owned by Geo Group, that operates multiple detention centers . The contractor didn’t not immediately respond to email from The Associated Press requesting comment.
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