"The Nashville Banner," a locally owned, community-supported civic news organization, in collaboration with "Nashville Noticias," another independent local news outlet, recently reported on the case of Iris Dayana Monterroso-Lemus, a pregnant Guatemalan immigrant who entered the United States illegally.
As reported by the Banner, Monterroso-Lemus was apprehended by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Tennessee and subsequently transferred to an ICE facility in Louisiana.
The publication alleges that Monterroso-Lemus did not receive adequate prenatal care during her detention, resulting in a miscarriage. I had him inside here for three days, in this Louisiana facility, my baby dead in my stomach, inside my stomach for three days, dead, Monterroso-Lemus recounted.
The story has sparked outrage and drawn attention from major media outlets, including Rolling Stone and The International Business Times UK, particularly in Tennessee, where Mayor Freddie O'Connell has publicly expressed his disdain for ICE enforcement. A GoFundMe page set up by Monterroso-Lemus's boyfriend, Gary Bivens, to cover her medical and transportation expenses has raised over $6,000 at the time of writing.
The incident occurred in late April, and more than a month later, Washington Representative Jamila Jayapal has chosen to highlight Monterroso-Lemus's story on her social media account to voice her opposition to ICE and support for illegal immigrants.
"The Nashville Banner" article links Monterroso-Lemus's alleged mistreatment to the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigrants in Nashville. The publication reports that ICE and the Tennessee Highway Patrol recently made 588 traffic stops in predominantly Latino neighborhoods, resulting in the arrests of 196 illegal residents. Despite claims that ICE was only targeting criminals, fewer than half had prior criminal records.
The article raises questions about the identities of those arrested and the conditions they face in detention. On May 14, ICE Acting Director Todd M. Lyons announced that nine detainees have died in custody since Trump took office, reigniting concerns about the quality of medical care in immigration detention centers.
However, the circumstances surrounding Monterroso-Lemus's arrest and detention are not fully addressed in the article. According to the International Business Times UK, Monterroso-Lemus has six other children, two of whom are in the custody of her mother in America. A warrant was reportedly issued for Monterroso-Lemus's arrest because she missed a custody hearing related to one or more of her children.
The article also reveals that Monterroso-Lemus and her boyfriend, Gary Bivens, have been together for just over a year, meaning she does not have the status of an American citizen's spouse. Monterroso-Lemus was arrested on March 26 and was transferred several times between Illinois, Tennessee, and Alabama before ending up in Louisiana in early April.
Monterroso-Lemus claims she suffered abuse and did not receive proper care at the Louisiana ICE facility, despite her pleas. On April 29, she was admitted to Ochsner LSU Health Monroe Medical Center, a labor and delivery hospital. The physicians note states that Monterroso-Lemus complained of experiencing no fetal movement, lower abdominal pain, and an increase in vaginal discharge for three days before she was hospitalized.
However, Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin refuted these claims, stating that Monterroso-Lemus received full medical and prenatal care. McLaughlin also revealed that Monterroso-Lemus, a Guatemalan citizen, has been arrested multiple times for child abuse and is wanted on an active warrant for homicide.
Despite the controversy surrounding Monterroso-Lemus's case, she has reportedly been deported back to Guatemala. It remains to be seen whether Representative Jayapal and her colleagues will argue that Monterroso-Lemus did not receive due process and demand her return to the United States to be with her children.
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