A Solution Nobody Wanted

I wonder what the MAGA Right-To-Life crowd thinks about their president’s actions placing pregnant women* and their unborn at risk? How do the religious-right feel about sexual assaults at ICE detention centers? I pick on those who should be most outraged except for their hypocrisy, while knowing that we should all feel the outrage about the lack of humanity being exhibited in the name of political theatre.

When marauding gangs of thugs were given governmental approval to strike terror into the immigrant community of America, what did the president and the former governor of South Dakota, Kristi Noem, think would happen? They were the ones who gave carte blanche to these ICE agents and others quickly recruited into service. Their rush to chaos with the illusory goal of “solving the immigration problem” was nothing more than political shenanigans played out at the expense of a vulnerable community.

* [Footnote: The reports of a pregnant woman (Monterroso-Lemus) writhing in pain and vaginal discharge on a cement floor of a detention facility for three days without care and later transported to a Monroe, Louisiana hospital where she gave birth to a stillborn child under the watch of two federal agents, are unconfirmed by Snopes. They are attempting to confirm the information from the woman who has been deported to Guatemala. A similar story about a Honduran woman during the first Trump presidency who lost her baby in ICE custody was reported by the NY Times in 2019.]

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The following is a copy of an article outlining the depravity with which this president is “solving” a problem. It is from a Wired article of June 25, 2025, titled They're Not Breathing: Inside the Chaos of ICE Detention Center 911 Calls

On April 28, a nurse at the Aurora ICE Processing Center near Denver called 911. A woman in custody, four months pregnant, had arrived at the facility’s medical unit, bleeding and in pain. As the staff rushed to get vitals, the dispatcher rattled off questions: How old was she? Was the pregnancy high risk? The nurse hesitated: “She just came to us three days ago.”

On 911 audio obtained by WIRED, the dispatcher’s voice cuts in:

“Is there any sign of life?”

“Have we heard a heartbeat?”

“Does she feel any kicking?”

“We don’t have the equipment to do that,” the nurse replies.

It was just one incident in a spike of emergencies playing out inside Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers nationwide.

A WIRED investigation into 911 calls from 10 of the nation's largest immigration detention centers found that serious medical incidents are rising at many of the sites. The data, obtained through public records requests, show that at least 60 percent of the centers analyzed had reported serious pregnancy complications, suicide attempts, or sexual assault allegations. Since January, these 10 facilities have collectively placed nearly 400 emergency calls. Nearly 50 of those have involved potential cardiac episodes, 26 referenced seizures, and 17 reported head injuries. Seven calls described suicide attempts or self-harm, including overdoses and hangings. Six others involved allegations of sexual abuse—including at least one case logged as “staff on detainee.”

WIRED spoke with immigration attorneys, local migrant advocates, national policy experts, and individuals who have been recently detained or have family currently in ICE custody. Their accounts echoed the data: a system overwhelmed, and at times, seemingly indifferent to medical crises.

Experts believe the true number of medical emergencies is far higher.

The records WIRED reviewed capture only the medical emergencies that resulted in a 911 call—typically made by facility staff. Experts say many serious incidents likely go unreported, citing years’ worth of reports and independent medical reviews. Even among those that did prompt outside help, a third of all the calls had vague or nonexistent descriptions, with details often withheld by authorities.

For example, on March 16, a woman identifying herself as a detainee at the Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia, called 911. Communication was strained: The dispatcher spoke no Spanish, and the caller only a little English. "I need help,” the woman said. "I need … ayuda." The line goes abruptly dead, triggering a follow-up call from the emergency operator. A staff member at the facility answers the phone: “We're at a detention center, and the detainee called 911, I'm sorry.” The woman's voice is still audible in the background, still pleading. Records indicate no ambulance was dispatched.

ICE detention facilities are operating over capacity. Detention has surged by more than 48 percent since January, pushing the detained population to over 59,000—an all-time high, according to available data. The 2025 emergency call data also reflects conditions before ICE’s latest enforcement surge—a May directive from Department of Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem and White House adviser Stephen Miller to triple daily arrests. Accordingly, the crises documented here are likely to deepen.

In pursuit of its eventual goal of detaining 100,000 people simultaneously, the agency is targeting not just high-priority criminal offenders, but those who report, check in, and otherwise follow the law. The result has stretched the detention system to its limit. ICE has responded by offloading detainees into federal penitentiaries and tent-like barracks in detention camps, while issuing a wave of no-bid contracts—financial windfalls for private prison giants like The GEO Group and CoreCivic, which operate the vast majority of the facilities named in this report.

The human cost of ICE’s strategy is increasingly visible. Dispatch data from 911 calls reveal how quickly medical emergencies can spiral inside these remote, crowded facilities—places where urgent care delivery is often delayed, falls on overworked staff, or is hindered by “insufficient or malfunctioning” equipment.

The DHS and ICE did not respond to multiple requests for comment.