Family's Heartbreak as Son Dies in ICE Custody Amidst Allegations of Neglect

Los Angeles, California – For Lucia Uribe, Saturdays were a somber ritual: a journey to the edge of California's desert to visit her son, Ismael Ayala-Uribe, in detention. Ismael was one of countless individuals apprehended during former President Donald Trump's immigration enforcement initiatives. Born in Mexico and brought to the U.S. as a child, he was arrested on August 17 while working at a car wash and subsequently held in immigration custody. His journey through detention included a local jail and later the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Adelanto, California.

One fateful Saturday, Lucia noticed a disturbing change in her son. His hands appeared paler, his eyes were bloodshot, and his fever was escalating. "Mom, I’m not going to make it," Ismael confided in her. Lucia could only offer words of reassurance, her own premonition of dread tightening in her chest as she said goodbye – the last time she would see him alive.

Two days later, Lucia's worst fears were realized when police informed her of Ismael's death at 2:32 am on September 22, 2025. Ismael was among over 50 individuals who died in ICE custody during the initial 500 days of Trump's second term. A coroner's report from the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department attributed his death to complications from a pelvic abscess. However, Ismael's family contends that inadequate medical care within ICE facilities allowed a treatable infection to become fatal.

For months, the Al Jazeera documentary series Fault Lines has investigated the conditions within ICE custody and the circumstances surrounding the deaths of detainees, seeking to understand how preventable tragedies like Ismael's occur. The year 2025, the year Ismael died, was reportedly the deadliest on record for individuals in ICE custody, with experts warning that 2026 could be equally or more devastating.

The Trump administration has repeatedly refuted claims of rising deaths in ICE custody. The Department of Homeland Security, overseeing ICE, asserted in a social media post that the death rate has remained consistent with the past decade's data, stating, "There has been NO spike in deaths." However, experts and watchdog groups argue this perspective may be misleading. Nicholas Cuneo, an expert in immigrant health with Physicians for Human Rights, noted that while the overall detained population has increased, the death rate has nearly tripled, a proportion he deems "not proportional to the detained population."

A Human Rights Watch report released in June highlighted that since Trump's return to office, immigrants in ICE custody have died at a rate approximately three times higher than during his predecessor Joe Biden's term. The annual mortality rate increased from 2.24 per 10,000 detainees under Biden to 6.38 per 10,000 under Trump's second term. While 33 people died in ICE custody in the previous year, at least 26 have died so far in 2026. Reagan Williams, a human rights lawyer involved in the Human Rights Watch report, stated that the rise in detentions does not fully explain the surge in deaths, indicating a higher percentage of detained immigrants are dying under the current administration.

Overcrowding in ICE facilities is a contributing factor, but Physicians for Human Rights also identified patterns of delayed emergency care, understaffing, and insufficient medical treatment, raising concerns that many ICE deaths, including Ismael's, could have been prevented.

Ismael, described as a caring son and uncle with a big heart, came to the U.S. at age five. He had qualified for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program but lost his status in 2015 following a DUI conviction. He was 39 when he arrived at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center. Two weeks later, he reported a high fever and a painful sore. On September 18, 2025, Adelanto staff initiated a Code Blue alert for Ismael, indicating a life-threatening medical emergency. Despite receiving pain medication, an ointment, and a fiber supplement, Cuneo, who reviewed the case, stated Ismael should have received a physical examination and antibiotics, calling the lack of such care "a major failure."

Hours after Lucia's visit, Ismael's condition deteriorated. ICE documents indicate he was vomiting and shaking shortly after midnight on Sunday. He was later sent to an intensive care unit, where he experienced cardiac arrest and subsequently died. Cuneo believes Ismael's death was preventable, stemming from a simple abscess that was not treated promptly.

A coroner's investigation, obtained by Fault Lines, revealed Ismael was critically ill upon arrival at the hospital, information omitted from ICE's public report. The report also contradicted ICE's timeline, suggesting Ismael went into cardiac arrest nearly a full day before his official time of death. ICE's report described his condition on September 21 as "calm and cooperative," with no mention of cardiac issues.

In response to Ismael's death, ICE stated that detainees receive "comprehensive medical care." However, California's Attorney General Rob Bonta told Fault Lines that his office's inspections of state detention centers, including Adelanto, found the "exact opposite." An internal mortality review committee also concluded that the care provided to Ismael "deviated beyond safe limits of practice," with evidence of delayed responses to his declining health.

Current detainees at the Adelanto detention center shared their fears about the conditions, citing inadequate medical care, moldy food, and retaliation for protests. Some are part of a class-action lawsuit alleging "inhumane and illegal conditions." Detainees like Kurt Campbell described staff dismissing their health concerns as lies, expressing a desire to "go outside alive, not dead." Four men, including Ismael, have died at Adelanto between September 2025 and March 2026. Guadalupe Moreno Cristin reported experiencing rectal bleeding and heart issues, receiving only Tylenol and serum in the infirmary. Jesus Jacobo Ortiz Ruiz estimated a severe shortage of doctors, stating, "You've got to be literally dying in here for you to get sent to the hospital."

U.S. Representative Judy Chu, who has conducted oversight visits at Adelanto for a decade, noted a consistent pattern of cost-cutting on food and medical care. In response to the conditions, approximately 150 detainees participated in a hunger strike earlier this year, leading to solitary confinement for some, including Campbell, and physical retaliation for others, like Ashraf Abujama.

The Adelanto facility, previously owned by Geo Group, has been acquired by the Department of Homeland Security. Critics worry this transition to federal ownership may reduce transparency and oversight. For Ismael's mother, Lucia, her Saturdays are now spent visiting his grave, a stark reminder of the void left by his absence. His brother, Jose Miguel Ayala, shared that the family is still struggling with the loss, experiencing "an emptiness that wasn't there before."