Senate Judiciary Committee report:
Trump Administration appears to have ended presumption of release, is
detaining more and more pregnant women in facilities ill-equipped to
manage their well-being and safety;
ICYMI:
Senator Murray Leads Colleagues in Reintroducing Legislation to Prevent
the Shackling and Mistreatment of Pregnant Women in ICE and CBP Custody
***LETTER HERE***
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray
(D-WA), a senior member and former Chair of the Senate Health,
Education, Labor and Pension (HELP) Committee, and Senator Blumenthal
(D-CT), a member of the Judiciary Committee, led 27 of their Senate
colleagues in a new letter
expressing grave concerns about the prevalence and treatment of
pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women in Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE) detention. In their letter to U.S. Department of
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, the lawmakers urgently
requested that ICE stop detaining pregnant women absent exceptional
circumstances, and asked the Department to provide information about the
number of pregnant women in its custody and the treatment of pregnant,
postpartum, and nursing women who are in ICE detention—as well as
answers to a long list of additional oversight questions no later than
September 26th.
A Government Accountability Office (GAO) study
published in 2020 found that between 2016 and 2018, ICE detained
pregnant women over 4,600 times. As Congress increased its oversight
into the detention of pregnant women, that number dropped to just 158
pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women detained in the first half of
Fiscal Year 2024. After President Trump took office this year, the
Administration stopped providing reports to Congress on the number of
pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women in their custody.
“We write to express grave concerns about the prevalence and
treatment of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women in Immigration and
Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention. A recent Senate Judiciary Committee
site visit and media reports point to the alarming detention of a
significant number of pregnant women in ICE custody. We urgently request
that ICE cease detaining pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women absent
exceptional circumstances and that the agency provide information about
the number and treatment of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women in
its custody,” the senators wrote. In their letter, the senators referenced reporting
on 911 calls recorded from ICE facilities involving pregnant women in
“distress, bleeding or suffering severe pain,” as well as a recent
Senate Judiciary Committee staff visit
to the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center in Basile, LA that found
14 pregnant women—a shockingly large number—detained at the time of the
visit, with many of them receiving little to no medical care.
“Medical research links ICE detention to high rates of
pregnancy complications, with physicians finding serious risks to both
fetal and maternal health. These already serious risks are heightened
by the deteriorating conditions inside detention facilities, including
severe overcrowding, reports of inadequate food and water, and lack of
emergency medical care,” the senators continued. “At
this time, we do not know how many pregnant women are in ICE custody,
whether U.S. citizen babies have been born in ICE custody, and what
provisions have been made for mothers’ and children’s health, safety,
and wellbeing.”
“ICE’s own standards are unambiguous on the detention,
monitoring, and treatment of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women in
detention. ICE Directive 11032.4, Identification and Monitoring of Pregnant, Postpartum, or Nursing Individuals (2021
Pregnancy Directive), states that ICE should not detain pregnant,
postpartum, or nursing individuals except under very limited
circumstances,” the senators wrote. “If detention of
these individuals is deemed absolutely necessary, the directive provides
detailed requirements for ensuring that they are monitored closely,
kept in suitable facilities, and given access to both routine and
emergency health care… Given the urgent nature of pregnant women’s
health and safety needs, we request that you ensure all detention
facilities are in full compliance with current law and the 2021
Pregnancy Directive.”
Senator Murray has long fought against the mistreatment of pregnant women in detention, and leads legislation—the Stop Shackling and Detaining Pregnant Women Act—that
would provide permanent safeguards for pregnant and postpartum women in
ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody. She first introduced the legislation in 2018 during the 115th Congress, and reintroduced it in 2019—on the heels of a Washington Post report about a woman in ICE custody whose pregnancy ended in a stillbirth after she went into labor prematurely—2023, and 2025 alongside Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia (D, TX-29), who leads companion legislation in the House of Representatives.
“In defiance of medical evidence counseling against their detention,
ICE is horrifically detaining pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women in
conditions that compromise their physical and mental health,” said Jennifer Ibañez Whitlock, Senior Policy Counsel for the National Immigration Law Center. “It
is clear that ICE is ill-prepared to meet even the minimum healthcare
and safety standards for pregnant women in their custody. The National
Immigration Law Center calls on Secretary Noem to immediately halt the
detention of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women, resume transparent
reporting, and ensure full compliance with federal law and agency
directives. The health and dignity of these women must no longer be
compromised.”
“U.S. policy makes clear that pregnant, postpartum, and lactating
women should not be detained — yet ICE continues to ignore these
protections,” said Zain Lakhani, Director of Migrant Rights and Justice at the Women’s Refugee Commission.
“We continue to hear reports of pregnant women being held in dangerous
conditions without adequate food or medical care, putting their health
and lives at risk. These harms are occurring in a black box, where we
know precious little about immigrant women’s access to healthcare and
nutrition. We thank Senators Murray and Blumenthal for demanding that
the Department of Homeland Security end this inhumane practice and call
for vital transparency around their access to services. Together we must
shine a light on detention conditions and ensure these women and their
babies are treated with safety, dignity, and humanity.”
In addition to Murray and Blumenthal, the following 27 senators also
signed onto the letter to Secretary Noem: Michael Bennet (D-CO), Cory
Booker (D-NJ), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NM),
Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Richard Durbin (D-IL), Kirsten Gillibrand
(D-NY), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Andy Kim (D-NJ),
Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Ed Markey (D-MA), Jeff
Merkley (D-OR), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Jacky Rosen
(D-NV), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH),
Tina Smith (D-MN), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Raphael Warnock (D-GA),
Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI),
and Ron Wyden (D-OR).
The full text of the letter is available HERE and below.
Secretary Noem:
We write to express grave concerns about the prevalence and treatment
of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women in Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE) detention. A recent Senate Judiciary Committee site
visit and media reports point to the alarming detention of a significant
number of pregnant women in ICE custody. We urgently request that ICE
cease detaining pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women absent
exceptional circumstances and that the agency provide information about
the number and treatment of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women in
its custody.
Medical research links ICE detention to high rates of pregnancy
complications, with physicians finding serious risks to both fetal and
maternal health. These already serious risks are heightened by the
deteriorating conditions inside detention facilities, including severe
overcrowding, reports of inadequate food and water, and lack of
emergency medical care. According to one media investigation, since
January 2025, at least four 911 calls have been recorded from ICE
detention facilities involving pregnant women in “distress, bleeding or
suffering severe pain”– including one involving a facility staff member.
A recent Senate Judiciary Committee staff visit to the South Louisiana
ICE Processing Center in Basile, Louisiana revealed that 14 pregnant
women—a shockingly large number—were detained at the time of the visit.
Women reported receiving little to no medical care and insufficient
nutrition; some reported having never been seen by a physician in the
facility, despite efforts to get care. The report shares an anecdote of
“a pregnant woman who had a miscarriage while detained and was allegedly
still bleeding when she was deported.”
Since the start of the Trump administration, accurate information
about the number of pregnant women in ICE custody has been difficult to
ascertain. Until this year, ICE provided semiannual reports to Congress
on the number and treatment of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women
in immigration detention; however this previously required reporting has
now ceased. Moreover, the effective closure of the Department of
Homeland Security’s (DHS) Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties
and Office of the Immigration Detention Ombudsman means that there is
little visibility and independent oversight of the treatment of
vulnerable populations, including pregnant women. At this time, we do
not know how many pregnant women are in ICE custody, whether U.S.
citizen babies have been born in ICE custody, and what provisions have
been made for mothers’ and children’s health, safety, and wellbeing.
ICE’s own standards are unambiguous on the detention, monitoring, and
treatment of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women in detention. ICE
Directive 11032.4, Identification and Monitoring of Pregnant, Postpartum, or Nursing Individuals
(2021 Pregnancy Directive), states that ICE should not detain pregnant,
postpartum, or nursing individuals except under very limited
circumstances. If detention of these individuals is deemed absolutely
necessary, the directive provides detailed requirements for ensuring
that they are monitored closely, kept in suitable facilities, and given
access to both routine and emergency health care. ICE recently
reaffirmed its commitment to the health and safety of detained pregnant
women in the 2025 revisions to its National Detention Standards.
In response to our concerns that pregnant, postpartum, and nursing
women may not be receiving necessary monitoring, health care, and
treatment, we request answers to the following questions by September
26, 2025.
- As of the date of receipt of this letter, how many women currently
in ICE custody are known to be pregnant, postpartum, and nursing? Please
provide totals for each category. How many of those women currently are
in their third trimester of pregnancy? For the purposes of defining
“postpartum,” please use the number of women in the one-year period
following the end of pregnancy.
- Section 5.4 of the 2021 Pregnancy Directive requires that pregnant,
postpartum, and nursing women receive weekly evaluations to determine
whether continued detention is appropriate.
- What is the process for conducting these evaluations and what
criteria are used? From January 1, 2025 to the date of receipt of this
letter, how many pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women have been
released pursuant to one of these screenings? Who is conducting these
evaluations and are they reported to ICE headquarters? If yes, what
office?
- From January 1, 2025 to the date of receipt of this letter, how many
have remained in ICE custody? Of those pregnant women who received
determinations to remain in custody, how many were in their third
trimester?
- Have any women given birth in ICE facilities from January 1, 2025 to
the date of receipt of this letter, including both live and stillborn
births? If so, how many live and stillborn births and in which
facilities? In that same time frame, how many miscarriages have
occurred?
- All children born on U.S. soil, including at ICE detention
facilities, are U.S. citizens. For any child born in ICE custody, what
is the process for allowing their mothers to secure U.S. birth
certificates and other vital documents? Have any women been deported
before having an opportunity to seek and obtain a birth certificate for
their child?
- How many pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women have been deported since January 1, 2025? Please provide the monthly total.
- Section 2 of the 2021 Pregnancy Directive requires that pregnant,
postpartum, and nursing women be detained in facilities that are
suitable for their physical and mental health needs.
- What ICE facilities currently detain pregnant, postpartum, and
nursing women? Please provide a list by facility name and location.
- What are the criteria for determining if a facility is suitable for
pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women? Of the pregnant, postpartum,
and nursing women in ICE custody, how many were detained in facilities
that have been deemed suitable according to these criteria from January
1, 2025 to the date of receipt of this letter? What ICE office
determined those facilities were suitable and when was that
determination made?
- How many women since January 1, 2025 have been transferred into a
suitable facility once it is discovered that they are pregnant,
postpartum, and nursing? How many of these transfers occurred because
the woman was pregnant?
- Since January 1, 2025, how many approved referrals for offsite
obstetrics and gynecology services have been completed? How many
inpatient hospitalizations related to active labor and birth for ICE
detainees have occurred since January 1, 2025?
- Please describe pregnant women’s access to prenatal and postnatal
health care in all ICE facilities that detain pregnant women, including
routine medical examinations, treatment for pregnancy complications, and
access to medical specialists such as OB/GYNs.
- Please describe the provisions for ensuring safe labor and delivery,
including an opportunity for mother and child to bond immediately after
birth.
- Current law (Section 528 of P.L. 118-47) and Section 2.3 of the 2021
Pregnancy Directive severely curtails the use of restraints on pregnant
women at any time and prohibits them entirely during active labor and
delivery. If restraints are used, documented medical approval is
required. Since January 1, 2025, have any pregnant women been placed in
restraints? If yes, how many and at which locations have restraints been
used on pregnant women?
- Please describe any provisions for ensuring that pregnant,
postpartum, and nursing women have access to a diet that meets the U.S.
government recommended dietary guidelines for pregnant, postpartum, and
nursing women, which includes including fruits, dairy products,
vegetables, to support a healthy pregnancy and ensure their safety after
birth.
Given the urgent nature of pregnant women’s health and safety needs,
we request that you ensure all detention facilities are in full
compliance with current law and the 2021 Pregnancy Directive. We also
request as a sign of your agency’s commitment to the care of all
individuals in your custody that you immediately resume semiannual
reporting on Pregnant, Postpartum, and Lactating Individuals in
Immigration Detention.
We look forward to receipt of this reporting and responses to our questions.
###
