Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Maryland) is demanding an investigation into the death of a Maryland man in ICE custody and possible “retaliation” against his wife for speaking out, according to a letter the lawmaker sent Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin on Thursday.
Julian Curo Churata had been held at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Louisiana for three months and died Sept. 29. ICE officials said guards found him in “medical distress” and took him to the hospital just after 8 p.m. the night before. Medical reports show the hospital, a seven-minute drive away, did not record Curo Churata as arriving until 10:26 p.m.
In a story that ran on the front page of The Washington Post last month, Curo Churata’s wife, Veronica Ramirez, said that ICE officials had yet to explain what happened to her husband and that she wanted answers. She said he had no history of health issues.
Three days later, DHS officials moved to place Ramirez, who is from El Salvador, in deportation proceedings, according to documents shared with The Post.
In his letter, which was also addressed to the inspector general of DHS and acting ICE Director David Venturella, Van Hollen called Curo Churata’s death “unacceptable” and demanded answers “as to how this could occur on your watch — including a full, independent investigation.”
The senator also criticized the deportation proceedings against Ramirez as “an apparent attempt to retaliate against Mr. Curo Churata’s wife.”
“The timing of this notice is highly suspicious, seeming to come in retaliation for her decision to speak out,” Van Hollen wrote. “It was issued just three days after Ms. Ramirez was quoted extensively in The Washington Post about her husband’s death. DHS has already taken one parent away from their children permanently, and now, in their time of grief, threatens to deport the other.”
In a statement last week, DHS confirmed the details of Ramirez’s deportation proceedings. The agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Van Hollen’s letter.
Curo Churata, originally from Peru, had lived in the United States for more than a decade. He was detained by immigration agents in June. He shared a home in Prince George’s County with Ramirez, their 6-year-old daughter and Ramirez’s son.
In a statement provided by her attorney last week, Ramirez said she’s “so afraid. ICE has already taken my daughter’s father, my husband, Julian, away from her. He died while in their custody. Now, I am terrified that they might try to separate her from me as well.”
“All he wanted to do in this country was work,” Ramirez said. “He paid his taxes, he wanted a better future for his children and for me — for his family. He didn’t deserve this at all. I want justice. I want the truth told, and I want them to take responsibility if they had anything to do with this. They need to tell the truth and let the real story come to light.”
Max Schoening, a civil rights lawyer representing Ramirez, said last month that there was “mounting information” that detention center staff “ignored Mr. Curo Churata’s urgent medical needs, showing a complete disregard for his life.” He also called the deportation proceedings against Ramirez “clear retaliation” for speaking out.
Van Hollen slammed ICE over conditions at its detention centers, writing that “public reporting on ICE facilities has consistently revealed inhumane detention conditions and evidence of inadequate and delayed care.”
At least 57 people, including Curo Churata, have died in ICE custody since President Donald Trump began his second term.
“ICE maintains that it is ‘committed to ensuring that all those in custody reside in safe, secure and humane environments,’” Van Hollen’s letter said. “The death of Mr. Curo-Churata, as well as the public record on detention conditions during the second Trump Administration, contradict those claims.”
The letter requests that ICE officials preserve and release any records related to Curo Churata’s death. It also includes a list of questions about the circumstances surrounding the death and requests an answer by Nov. 16.
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