Maryland’s senior senator wants answers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement surrounding the death of a Laurel, Maryland, man.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen says ICE has until Nov. 16 to turn over information about the death of the man in its custody and why his wife is now facing deportation after speaking out.
“If they’ve got nothing to hide, they should have nothing to fear from an independent investigation,” Van Hollen said.
On June 27, 47-year-old Julián Curo-Churata was arrested by ICE agents at a Home Depot in Laurel less than a week after he had attended an immigration court hearing. ICE later transferred him to the Richwood Correctional Center in Monroe, Louisiana.
Eleven days after a judge denied Curo-Churata’s request to voluntarily return to his home country, Peru, he died at a hospital while in ICE custody on Sept. 29.
In an Oct. 1 news release, ICE said Curo-Churata received proper medical care and was seen by medical professionals while in custody.
But in a letter to the Department of Homeland Security and ICE, Van Hollen questions that account. He points out that correctional officers reportedly said Curo-Churata had been lethargic and unresponsive throughout the day but wasn’t taken to the hospital until later that evening.
Van Hollen is also concerned about the timeline. ICE says Curo-Churata was taken to the hospital at 8:14 p.m., but hospital records show he didn’t arrive until 10:26 p.m., even though the hospital was a seven-minute drive away.
The senator wants to know what happened during that time, why it took so long to get him medical attention, and why detention center staff took him to the hospital instead of calling an ambulance.
“While U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement claims that he had proper medical care, this is the same operation that called Renee Good and Alex Pretti domestic terrorists after they’ve been shot and killed by federal agents,” Van Hollen said. “So we’ve learned we can’t trust what the Trump administration tells us about these cases.”
Van Hollen’s letter also raises questions about the treatment of Curo-Churata’s wife, Verónica Ramírez, after she spoke to The Washington Post about her husband’s death.
“It was soon after she asked questions about why her husband had died in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody that she was contacted and swept up in deportation proceedings,” Van Hollen said. “It appears to be a clear case of retaliation against her.”
Van Hollen told WTOP that his office has spoken to Ramírez.
“She’s now very worried about her own deportation, especially the impact that will have on their child,” Van Hollen said. “She’s obviously traumatized by everything that’s happened to herself and her husband.”
Van Hollen believes the results from Tuesday’s elections, which gave Democrats control of both houses of Congress, will help get answers.
“We’re dealing with an U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation that thinks it’s an accountability-free zone,” Van Hollen said. “They have tried time and again to stonewall investigations, to refuse to answer questions. So, we’ll have to use all the tools at our disposal to demand accountability.”
When asked about Stephen Miller replacing Susie Wiles as President Donald Trump’s chief of staff, Van Hollen said Trump was “doubling down on cruelty in his administration.”
“What Donald Trump just did was give voters all over the country a big back of his hand. I mean, this was like a kick in the teeth,” Van Hollen said. “Stephen Miller has been the architect of the worst abuses coming out of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.”
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