Public Health and Federal Custody

Haitian asylum seeker Emmanuel Damas, 56, of Dorchester, Massachusetts, died on March 2 at a hospital in Arizona after months in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, prompting Massachusetts Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey and Rep. Ayanna Pressley to demand an investigation from DHS and ICE. Damas was taken into ICE custody in Boston in September 2025 and transferred to an ICE facility in Florence, Arizona, where, according to his brother, he reported a severe toothache in February that progressed to pneumonia and a life‑threatening infection. His brother says Damas cycled between the detention center and the hospital over several days and was on life support before he died, though ICE has not yet released an official cause of death or a detailed timeline of his medical care. In a letter, the lawmakers called his death "highly preventable" and alleged that ICE’s failure to provide timely medical treatment allowed an untreated toothache to become a deadly infection, raising broader questions about medical standards in immigration detention as Pressley said Damas is at least the 10th person to die in ICE custody this year. ICE acknowledged to CBS News that it is preparing a public statement but had not released it as of Friday, leaving advocates and family members pressing for transparency on what happened inside the Florence facility.