Unaccompanied minor dies after stay in Florida migration shelter

The cause of death of 17-year-old Ángel Eduardo Maradiaga Espinoza, who was found unconscious in US custody, is not yet known.

The United States government has confirmed that an unaccompanied Honduran minor died in her custody earlier this week amid heightened immigration controls as the controversial Title 42 border deportation policy expires.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a statement on Friday acknowledging the May 10 death of 17-year-old Ángel Eduardo Maradiaga Espinoza. He was found unconscious at a migrant shelter in Safety Harbor, Florida, and after resuscitation attempts at a local hospital, he was pronounced dead.

The 17-year-old’s death is the first known death under Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration of a young migrant or asylum seeker in government custody. An estimated six children died in custody under his predecessor, Republican Donald Trump, with several succumbing after falling ill and one after contracting sepsis.

In a statement on Maradiaga Espinoza’s death, the department said it was “deeply saddened by this tragic loss”. The statement explained that HHS was in contact with Maradiaga Espinoza’s family and that it was “reviewing all clinical details of this case, including all medical care records.”

“An examination by a medical examiner is underway,” it added. The cause of death was not immediately determined.

Karine Jean-Pierre, White House press secretary, spoke briefly about the death during her press briefing on Friday, acknowledging that the medical examination had opened on May 10. “Being a mother and celebrating Mother’s Day on Sunday is very devastating news,” she said.

The comments come a day after Honduran Secretary of State Enrique Reina posted a message on Twitter about the teen’s death, calling on the US government to “investigate the matter thoroughly” and “give the full weight of the law adjust” if misconduct is found. .

“This terrible event underlines the importance of working together on the bilateral migration agenda regarding the situation of unaccompanied minors, to find solutions,” wrote Reina.

News of Maradiaga Espinoza’s death also follows the expiration of the title 42 policy at the stroke of midnight on Friday morning. The much-criticized policy had been used more than 2.8 million times by immigration authorities to reject migrants and asylum seekers in the name of public health.

But when the US COVID-19 emergency declaration ended on May 11, so did Title 42, forcing the Biden administration to return to its powers under Title 8 of the US Code, which governs immigration and nationality.

As part of its strategy to discourage arrivals at the US-Mexico border, the Biden administration has introduced new measures that would, in some cases, punish irregular crossings with a five-year entry ban and possible criminal charges.

While campaigning for the presidency leading up to the 2020 election, then-candidate Biden criticized the incumbent Trump for his treatment of children and families on the US-Mexico border. Trump’s “zero-tolerance” policy at the border resulted in parents being separated from their children as their immigration process progressed.

But Biden himself faced criticism after taking office, when in 2021 he reopened a peak facility for teens who arrived at the US-Mexico border without a parent or guardian with them.

That the facility had previously been open under Trump fueled allegations that Biden was doubling down on his predecessor’s border policies, especially as news reports emerged in 2021 of emergency shelters housing thousands of children.

Federal law requires the U.S. Border Guard to hand over all children who reach the border without their parents within three days to the Department of Health and Human Services for care in the agency’s long-term facilities.

From there, the department works to release individual children to a family member or sponsor, although it is “not a party to the child’s immigration process.”

Unlike some other immigrant detention centers, housing and social facilities for unaccompanied minors have beds and provide classroom education, recreation, and mental and medical health services. But critics warn that such facilities are not equipped or suitable for children in the long run.

The Department of Health and Human Services had 8,492 unaccompanied minors in custody from May 2. During the past fiscal year, 72 percent of youth in the program were over the age of 14, and 64 percent were boys.

Most came from Guatemala, at 47 percent, followed by Honduras at 29 percent and El Salvador at 13 percent.