Dying in ICE custody: Inside one family’s story of heartbreak

Fifty-three people died in ICE custody during Donald Trump’s first 500 days back in office. Fault Lines investigates the case of Ismael Ayala-Uribe.

Demonstrators march near the Adelanto ICE Processing Center in California on September 29 to draw attention to the inhumane conditions inside [Jill Connelly/AP Photo] Demonstrators march near the Adelanto ICE Processing Center in California on September 29 to draw attention to the inhumane conditions inside [Jill Connelly/AP Photo]

Los Angeles, California – Saturdays marked a weekly pilgrimage for Lucia Uribe. Every weekend, she would travel to the edge of California's desert to visit her son, Ismael Ayala-Uribe, in detention.

Ismael was among the hundreds of thousands of people swept up in United States President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.

Born in Mexico and brought to the US as a child, he was arrested on August 17 while working at a car wash. Ever since, he had been in the custody of immigration authorities, first at a local jail and later at a detention centre for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Adelanto, California.

But one Saturday was different. Lucia remembers that Ismael’s hands looked paler, his eyes were bloodshot, and the fever he had was rising.

“Mom, I’m not going to make it,” Lucia recalls Ismael telling her. There was little she could do but reassure him.

“I told him, ‘Oh, my son, just hang in there as long as you can,’” Lucia said. “When I said goodbye to him, I felt something in my chest, a tightness, and it made me want to cry.”

It was the last time she would see her son alive. Lucia’s fears were confirmed by a knock at her door two days later, when police told her that her son had died at 2:32am on September 22, 2025.

Ismael was one of more than 50 people to die in ICE custody during the first 500 days of Trump's second term.

A coroner's report from the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department in southern California found that his death was caused by complications from an abscess in his pelvic region.

Ismael's family, however, has argued that insufficient medical treatment in ICE facilities led a preventable infection to fester into a deadly condition.

For months, the Al Jazeera documentary series Fault Lines has spoken to people in ICE custody and the families of those who never made it out alive, to understand the conditions that could have led to deaths like Ismael's.

What it found was that 2025, the year Ismael died, was the deadliest year in history for those in ICE custody. But experts fear 2026 is on track to match or surpass that record.

The Trump administration has consistently denied reports that deaths in ICE custody are increasing.

In a social media post in June, the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, claimed that the death rate has remained "consistent with data over the last decade".

"There has been NO spike in deaths," the department wrote, pointing to the percentage of deaths relative to the overall population of ICE detainees.

But experts and watchdog organisations warn that ICE's framing may be misleading.

“What has often been claimed is that the overall detained population is going up," said Nicholas Cuneo, an expert in immigrant health with Physicians for Human Rights, an advocacy organisation.

But he pointed to statistics that show the death rate has nearly tripled. “That clearly is not proportional to the detained population," Cuneo said.

In June, Human Rights Watch published a report revealing that, since Trump returned to office, immigrants in ICE custody are dying at a rate roughly three times higher than under his predecessor Joe Biden.

The annualised mortality rate during Biden's four-year term was 2.24 for every 10,000 detainees. Since Trump began his second term, that proportion has risen to 6.38 deaths for every 10,000 people in custody.

In total, 33 people died in ICE custody last year, according to the agency's own statistics. So far in 2026, at least 26 people have died.

Reagan Williams, a human rights lawyer and researcher who worked on the June report, said that the increase in overall detentions does not explain the spike in deaths.

"The administration has incarcerated record numbers of immigrants," Williams said.

"And yet this rapid rise in detention does not fully account for the staggering increase in deaths. A higher percentage of detained immigrants are dying under this administration."

While overcrowding at ICE facilities is a factor, experts at Physicians for Human Rights also found a pattern of delayed emergency care, understaffing and failure to provide adequate medical treatment.

Those factors have raised concerns that many ICE deaths may have been preventable, including Ismael’s.

Lucia and Eusebio Ayala watch as doves are released near their son Ismael Ayala-Uribe's coffin on October 9, 2025, in Westminster, California [Mario Tama/Getty Images via AFP] Lucia and Eusebio Ayala watch as doves are released near their son Ismael Ayala-Uribe's coffin on October 9, 2025, in Westminster, California [Mario Tama/Getty Images via AFP]

A round-faced man with dark-rimmed glasses, a moustache and short-trimmed hair, Ismael came to the US when he was only five years old.

Southern California became his home, and as an adult, he qualified for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) programme, which offered temporary protection against deportation.

He lost his DACA status, however, in 2015 after a conviction for driving under the influence.

His family remembers him as a caring son and uncle, always willing to buy his niece and nephew new clothes or school supplies.

“Ismael was always looking after his siblings. He just had a big heart,” said his brother, Jose Miguel Ayala. “He was very protective of not just us, but my mum and dad too.”

He was 39 years old when he was brought to the Adelanto ICE Processing Center.

Two weeks after his arrival, Ismael told his family that he developed a high fever and a painful sore on his backside.

On September 18, 2025, workers at Adelanto initiated a Code Blue alert for Ismael, signalling a life-threatening medical emergency. Medical staff rushed him from his dorm to the infirmary in a wheelchair.

ICE documents show that Ismael was given pain medication, an ointment and a fibre supplement.

But according to Physicians for Human Rights' Cuneo, who reviewed the case, Ismael should have received a physical examination and antibiotics.

"That is a major failure," Cuneo said.

Demonstrators leave white flowers outside the Adelanto ICE Processing Center on September 29 in solidarity with those detained inside [Jill Connelly/AP Photo]

That weekend, hours after Lucia’s visit, Ismael’s condition worsened. Just after midnight on Sunday, ICE records say he was vomiting, shaking and sweating.

According to ICE documents, he was later sent to an intensive care unit, where he went into cardiac arrest within minutes of his arrival and subsequently died.

“I believe Ismael’s death could have fully been prevented by timely care,” Cuneo said. “It was a simple abscess that was not treated in a timely manner.”

Fault Lines obtained a coroner's investigation that reveals Ismael was critically ill when he first arrived at the hospital, a fact that was left out of ICE's public report on his death.

The coroner's report also contradicts ICE's timeline for Ismael's death. It indicates Ismael went into cardiac arrest early on September 21, nearly a full day before he passed away. Medical staff, however, managed to restore his heartbeat after intubating him.

That conflicts with ICE's report, which only notes his pulse stopping once: shortly before his death was announced on the morning of September 22. ICE described his condition on September 21 as "calm and cooperative", but it signalled no heart problems.

“If they had given him the medical care and what he needed, maybe he would be here with us,” Lucia said.

In a statement about Ismael’s death, ICE said detainees receive “comprehensive medical care” throughout their time in custody.

But California’s Attorney General Rob Bonta told Fault Lines that his office found “the exact opposite" during its inspections of the state's detention centres.

“We've gone to these facilities. We've gone into Adelanto. We have done our own physical inspections," Bonta explained.

“If what the ICE spokesperson said was true, Mr Ayala-Uribe would be with us today.”

An internal mortality review committee also found that the care provided to Ismael at Adelanto "deviated beyond safe limits of practice", according to a document obtained by US media earlier this year.

It also suggests that medical staff delayed responding to calls about Ismael's declining health in the days leading up to his death.

Pallbearers carry Ismael Ayala-Uribe's coffin at his funeral on October 9, 2025 [Mario Tama/Getty Images via AFP] Pallbearers carry Ismael Ayala-Uribe's coffin at his funeral on October 9, 2025 [Mario Tama/Getty Images via AFP]

'We want to go outside alive, not dead'

Fault Lines spoke to current detainees in the Adelanto detention centre who say they, too, fear the conditions could be harmful to their health.

Many described inadequate medical care, mouldy food and retaliation for protesting against the subpar conditions.

Some are part of a class-action lawsuit, filed in January, accusing the US government of "inhumane and illegal conditions" at Adelanto.

"They don't take things seriously," one detainee, Kurt Campbell, said of the Adelanto staff.

"They think everyone's a liar. So when you're going through something and you express what you're going through, they act like you're lying. We do want to go outside, but we want to go outside alive, not dead."

Four men have died in Adelanto between September 2025 and March 2026, including Ismael. Campbell, who is originally from Jamaica, said he knew one of the detainees who passed away.

"His last days were spent in confinement and in Adelanto instead of being with his family," Campbell said. "He didn't kill anyone. He didn't hurt anyone. His crime was coming over the border."

Guadalupe Moreno Cristin, another detainee in Adelanto, recalls experiencing rectal bleeding for more than a week, in addition to heart issues.

When he was taken to the infirmary, the only treatment he said he was given was Tylenol and a serum. His health has continued to deteriorate.

"I haven't had a bath for, like, eight days now because I can't lift my hands up," Cristin said. "I can't change myself on my own. I can't stand for long, and I can't walk much."

Detainee Jesus Jacobo Ortiz Ruiz estimated that, for every 320 people in ICE custody, there is only one doctor. "You've got to be literally dying in here for you to get sent to the hospital," Ruiz added.

Fault Lines spoke to US Representative Judy Chu, who represents a congressional district near Adelanto. For the past decade, she has been conducting oversight visits at the facility.

"I've seen firsthand for over a decade how they've cut corners, how they don't want to spend money on food, and most importantly, they don't want to spend money on medical care," Chu said.

To push for change, roughly 150 detainees signed a petition and went on hunger strike earlier this year to denounce the "unbearable and inhuman" conditions at Adelanto.

Campbell said he was placed into solitary confinement for 30 days for participating in the hunger strike. Other detainees reported receiving physical retaliation, including Ashraf Abujama.

"They just enjoy using force on me," Abujama said. "They want to just use me as an example to all the detainees, that '[this is] what we can do'."

Lucia Ayala grieves with her family as they bury Ismael Ayala-Uribe in Westminster, California, on October 9, 2025 [Mario Tama/Getty Images via AFP] Lucia Ayala grieves with her family as they bury Ismael Ayala-Uribe in Westminster, California, on October 9, 2025 [Mario Tama/Getty Images via AFP]

'An emptiness that wasn't there before'

In recent weeks, changes have been under way at Adelanto.

The facility, formerly owned by the private prison firm Geo Group, has been sold to the Department of Homeland Security for $950m, as the federal government seeks to acquire more detention centres.

Critics, however, warn that the switch to federal ownership could make conditions inside Adelanto more opaque, limiting the ability of state and local authorities to exercise their oversight roles.

It is a change that concerns families of detainees like Ismael. Where once his mother Lucia visited him at Adelanto, she now spends her weekends with a new ritual: visiting his grave on Sundays.

Jose, Ismael’s brother, often joins her, along with his sister and her two kids.

Their father often stays behind. "My dad still has a hard time going," Jose explained.

More than a year has passed, but the entire family is still grappling with the loss.

"There's a time where I just feel like he's just going to walk in," Jose said. "There's just an emptiness that wasn't there before."

在唐纳德·特朗普重返总统宝座的头500天里，有53人死于美国移民及海关执法局（ICE）的羁押期间。《断层线》栏目将调查伊斯梅尔·阿亚拉-乌里韦的案件。

9月29日，示威者在加利福尼亚州阿德兰托移民及海关执法局（ICE）处理中心附近游行，以引起人们对该中心内非人道待遇的关注。[吉尔·康奈利/美联社照片]

加利福尼亚州洛杉矶——每周六对露西亚·乌里韦来说都是一次朝圣之旅。每个周末，她都会前往加州沙漠边缘，探望被拘留的儿子伊斯梅尔·阿亚拉-乌里韦。

伊斯梅尔是美国总统唐纳德·特朗普移民政策打击行动中数十万受影响者之一。

他出生于墨西哥，幼年时被带到美国。8月17日，他在一家洗车店工作时被捕。此后，他一直被移民当局拘留，先是被关押在当地监狱，后来被转移到位于加利福尼亚州阿德兰托的移民和海关执法局（ICE）拘留中心。

但有一个星期六却不一样。露西亚记得，伊斯梅尔的手看起来苍白了，眼睛布满血丝，而且他的烧越来越高。

“妈妈，我活不下去了，”露西亚回忆起伊斯梅尔当时对她说的话。她能做的也只有安慰他。

“我告诉他，‘哦，我的儿子，一定要坚持住，’”露西亚说。“当我跟他道别时，我感到胸口一阵紧缩，几乎要哭出来。”

那是她最后一次见到活着的儿子。两天后，警方敲响了露西亚的家门，证实了她的担忧。警方告诉她，她的儿子于2025年9月22日凌晨2点32分去世。

在特朗普第二个任期的前 500 天里，有 50 多人死于美国移民及海关执法局 (ICE) 的拘留期间，伊斯梅尔就是其中之一。

南加州圣贝纳迪诺县警长办公室的验尸官报告显示，他的死因是盆腔脓肿引发的并发症。

然而，伊斯梅尔的家人认为，ICE设施中医疗救治不足，导致原本可以预防的感染恶化成致命的疾病。

几个月来，半岛电视台纪录片系列《断层线》采访了被美国移民及海关执法局拘留的人员以及那些再也没能活着出来的人的家属，以了解可能导致像伊斯梅尔这样的死亡事件发生的条件。

调查发现，2025年，也就是伊斯梅尔去世的那一年，是美国移民及海关执法局（ICE）拘留人员死亡人数最多的一年。但专家担心，2026年的情况可能会与这一纪录持平甚至超过它。

特朗普政府一直否认有关美国移民及海关执法局（ICE）羁押期间死亡人数增加的报道。

今年 6 月，负责监管美国移民及海关执法局 (ICE) 的国土安全部在社交媒体上发帖称，死亡率“与过去十年的数据一致”。

该部门写道：“死亡人数没有出现激增”，并指出死亡人数占 ICE 拘留者总人数的百分比。

但专家和监督机构警告说，ICE 的说法可能具有误导性。

“人们经常声称，被拘留的总人数正在上升，”人权医师组织（一个倡导组织）的移民健康专家尼古拉斯·库内奥说。

但他指出，统计数据显示死亡率几乎翻了三倍。“这显然与被拘留人数不成比例，”库内奥说。

今年 6 月，人权观察组织发布报告称，自特朗普重返总统职位以来，被美国移民及海关执法局 (ICE) 拘留的移民死亡率大约是其前任乔·拜登执政时期的三倍。

拜登四年任期内的年化死亡率为每1万名被拘留者中有2.24人死亡。自特朗普开始第二个任期以来，这一比例已上升至每1万名被拘留者中有6.38人死亡。

根据美国移民及海关执法局（ICE）自身的统计数据，去年共有33人死于ICE羁押期间。截至2026年，至少已有26人死亡。

参与撰写六月份报告的人权律师兼研究员里根·威廉姆斯表示，拘留总人数的增加并不能解释死亡人数的激增。

威廉姆斯说：“本届政府监禁的移民人数创下了历史新高。”

“然而，拘留人数的迅速增加并不能完全解释死亡人数的惊人增长。在本届政府执政期间，被拘留移民的死亡比例更高。”

虽然移民拘留中心人满为患是一个因素，但人权医师组织的专家也发现存在紧急护理延误、人手不足和未能提供充分医疗的情况。

这些因素引发了人们的担忧，即许多移民和海关执法局（ICE）的死亡事件可能是可以避免的，包括伊斯梅尔的死亡。

2025年10月9日，在加利福尼亚州威斯敏斯特，露西娅和尤西比奥·阿亚拉夫妇注视着人们在他们儿子伊斯梅尔·阿亚拉-乌里韦的棺材旁放飞白鸽。[Mario Tama/Getty Images via AFP]

伊斯梅尔是个圆脸男人，戴着黑框眼镜，留着胡子，头发剪得很短。他五岁时就来到了美国。

南加州成了他的家，成年后，他符合“童年入境暂缓遣返”（DACA）计划的资格，该计划提供暂缓遣返保护。

然而，2015 年他因酒后驾车被定罪，失去了 DACA 身份。

他的家人都记得他是一位孝顺的儿子和慈爱的叔叔，总是乐意给侄子侄女买新衣服或学习用品。

“伊斯梅尔总是照顾他的兄弟姐妹。他心地善良，”他的哥哥何塞·米格尔·阿亚拉说。“他不仅非常保护我们，也保护我的父母。”

他被带到阿德兰托移民拘留中心时39岁。

抵达两周后，伊斯梅尔告诉家人，他开始发高烧，屁股上还长了一个疼痛的疮。

2025年9月18日，阿德兰托的工人们为伊斯梅尔启动了“蓝色代码”警报，表明他遇到了危及生命的紧急医疗情况。医务人员用轮椅将他从宿舍紧急送往医务室。

美国移民及海关执法局（ICE）的文件显示，伊斯梅尔服用了止痛药、药膏和纤维补充剂。

但据人权医生组织成员库内奥审查此案后表示，伊斯梅尔应该接受体检和抗生素治疗。

“那是一个重大失误，”库内奥说。

9月29日，示威者在阿德兰托移民及海关执法局处理中心外摆放白色鲜花，声援被拘留在里面的人们。[吉尔·康奈利/美联社照片]

那个周末，露西亚探望后几个小时，伊斯梅尔的病情恶化。据美国移民及海关执法局（ICE）的记录显示，周日凌晨刚过午夜，他就开始呕吐、发抖和出汗。

根据美国移民及海关执法局（ICE）的文件，他后来被送往重症监护室，到达后几分钟内心脏骤停，随后死亡。

“我相信，如果能及时治疗，伊斯梅尔的死完全可以避免，”库内奥说。“那只是一个简单的脓肿，却没有得到及时的治疗。”

《断层线》节目获得了一份验尸官调查报告，该报告显示伊斯梅尔刚到医院时病情危重，而美国移民及海关执法局 (ICE) 在其关于伊斯梅尔死亡的公开报告中却遗漏了这一事实。

验尸官的报告也与美国移民及海关执法局（ICE）对伊斯梅尔死亡时间线的描述相矛盾。报告指出，伊斯梅尔在9月21日清晨心脏骤停，几乎在他去世前一天。然而，医护人员在插管后成功恢复了他的心跳。

这与美国移民及海关执法局（ICE）的报告相矛盾，该报告只提到他的脉搏停止过一次：就在9月22日早上宣布他死亡之前不久。ICE在9月21日形容他的情况“平静且配合”，但这表明他没有心脏问题。

“如果他们能给他提供所需的医疗护理和帮助，也许他现在还能和我们在一起，”露西亚说。

美国移民及海关执法局 (ICE) 在一份关于伊斯梅尔之死的声明中表示，被拘留者在被拘留期间会得到“全面的医疗保健”。

但加州总检察长罗伯·邦塔告诉《断层线》杂志，他的办公室在对该州拘留中心进行检查时发现了“截然相反的情况”。

“我们已经去过这些设施。我们去过阿德兰托。我们自己进行了实地考察，”邦塔解释说。

“如果美国移民及海关执法局（ICE）发言人所言属实，那么阿亚拉-乌里韦先生今天本该和我们在一起。”

据美国媒体今年早些时候获得的一份文件显示，一个内部死亡审查委员会还发现，阿德兰托医院为伊斯梅尔提供的护理“超出了安全操作范围”。

这也表明，在伊斯梅尔去世前的几天里，医务人员对有关他健康状况恶化的求助电话反应迟缓。

2025年10月9日，在伊斯梅尔·阿亚拉-乌里韦的葬礼上，抬棺者抬着他的棺材。[Mario Tama/Getty Images via AFP]

“我们想活着出去，而不是死了。”

《断层线》采访了阿德兰托拘留中心的在押人员，他们表示，他们也担心拘留中心的条件可能对他们的健康有害。

许多人反映医疗条件不足、食物发霉，并且因抗议恶劣的医疗条件而遭到报复。

其中一些人参与了 1 月份提起的集体诉讼，指控美国政府在阿德兰托监狱存在“不人道和非法条件”。

“他们不把事情当回事，”一名被拘留者库尔特·坎贝尔这样评价阿德兰托监狱的工作人员。

“他们认为每个人都在说谎。所以当你遇到困难并表达你的感受时，他们会觉得你在撒谎。我们确实想出去走走，但我们想活着出去，而不是死了。”

2025年9月至2026年3月期间，阿德兰托有四名男子死亡，其中包括伊斯梅尔。坎贝尔来自牙买加，他说他认识其中一名去世的被拘留者。

坎贝尔说：“他生命的最后时光是在阿德兰托监狱度过的，而不是和家人在一起。他没有杀人，也没有伤害任何人。他的罪行就是越过边境。”

另一名被关押在阿德兰托的囚犯瓜达卢佩·莫雷诺·克里斯汀回忆说，除了心脏问题外，她还经历了超过一周的直肠出血。

他被送往医务室后，据他所说，医生只给他开了泰诺和注射了一种血清。他的健康状况持续恶化。

“我已经八天没洗澡了，因为我抬不起手，”克里斯汀说。“我不能自己换衣服。我不能长时间站立，也不能走太多路。”

被拘留者赫苏斯·雅各布·奥尔蒂斯·鲁伊斯估计，每320名被美国移民及海关执法局（ICE）拘留的人中，只有一名医生。“你得真的快死了才能被送去医院，”鲁伊斯补充道。

《断层线》栏目采访了代表阿德兰托附近选区的美国众议员朱迪·楚。过去十年间，她一直对该设施进行监督访问。

“十多年来，我亲眼目睹了他们如何偷工减料，他们不愿在食物上花钱，最重要的是，他们不愿在医疗保健上花钱，”朱说。

为了推动变革，今年早些时候，大约 150 名被拘留者签署了一份请愿书，并进行了绝食抗议，以谴责阿德兰托拘留中心“难以忍受和非人道”的条件。

坎贝尔称，他因参与绝食抗议而被单独监禁30天。其他被拘留者也报告称遭到人身报复，其中包括阿什拉夫·阿布贾马。

阿布贾马说：“他们就是喜欢对我使用暴力。他们想拿我杀鸡儆猴，警告所有被拘留者，‘这就是我们能做到的’。”

2025年10月9日，在加利福尼亚州威斯敏斯特，露西亚·阿亚拉与家人一起悼念伊斯梅尔·阿亚拉-乌里韦。[Mario Tama/Getty Images via AFP]

“一种以前从未有过的空虚感”

最近几周，阿德兰托发生了一些变化。

该设施原属私营监狱公司 Geo Group 所有，现已以 9.5 亿美元的价格出售给国土安全部，联邦政府正寻求收购更多拘留中心。

然而，批评人士警告说，转为联邦所有制可能会使阿德兰托监狱内部的情况更加不透明，从而限制州和地方当局行使监督职能的能力。

这种变化令像伊斯梅尔这样的被拘留者家属感到担忧。过去，他的母亲露西亚会去阿德兰托探望他，而现在，她只能在周末进行一项新的仪式：周日去他的墓地祭拜。

伊斯梅尔的哥哥何塞经常和他的妹妹以及她的两个孩子一起来和她一起玩。

他们的父亲经常留在家里。“我爸爸出行仍然很困难，”何塞解释说。

一年多过去了，但全家人仍然难以走出失去亲人的悲痛。

“有时候我感觉他随时都会走进来，”何塞说。“这里空荡荡的，以前从来没有过。”