Senators Demand End to Brutal Treatment of Pregnant Immigrants in ICE Custody

As the nation approaches Mother’s Day, a grim spotlight falls on the Trump administration’s ongoing abuse of pregnant and nursing immigrants held in ICE detention centers. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), and Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) have fired off a blistering letter to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, condemning the “appalling and horrific treatment” inflicted on this vulnerable group and demanding immediate answers and action.

The senators’ letter exposes a disturbing reality: pregnant women in ICE custody face a patchwork of neglect and abuse, with no consistent federal protections. Some facilities reportedly still shackle women during labor, a practice widely condemned as barbaric and dangerous. Others separate mothers from their newborns mere moments after birth, tearing families apart and inflicting lasting trauma. Medical care is often minimal or nonexistent—at the Camp East Montana facility in El Paso, Texas, pregnant detainees have been left without a doctor on site, receiving nothing more than water, prenatal vitamins, and temperature checks even when experiencing vaginal bleeding.

Data on pregnant immigrants in custody is scarce but alarming. Between January 2025 and February 2026, 363 pregnant, postpartum, and nursing immigrants were deported, with 16 recorded miscarriages in just six weeks. As of March 2026, approximately 126 pregnant women remain detained, according to the senators.

In response, Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Calif.) has introduced the Pregnant Women In Custody Act, a bill that would finally establish minimum standards for prenatal care across all federal detention facilities, including ICE centers. The bill would ban shackling during labor and improve health data collection, addressing the dangerous gaps in care that currently exist.

“It’s unacceptable that there are virtually no legal safeguards for pregnant women in federal custody,” Kamlager-Dove said. “This bill aims to right that wrong by ensuring healthier, safer futures for mothers and babies.”

The Trump administration’s failure to protect these women is not just neglect—it is a direct threat to their lives and the lives of their children. The senators’ letter demands that DHS immediately resume the “commonsense practice of presumption of release” for pregnant detainees, a policy that would spare many from these brutal conditions.

This is yet another chapter in the administration’s broader pattern of cruelty and disregard for human rights within the immigration detention system. As outrage builds, the question remains: will the administration act to end this abuse, or continue its callous indifference?

For now, pregnant immigrant mothers remain trapped in a system that treats them as less than human—shackled, separated, and suffering in silence. We will keep tracking this story and holding those in power accountable.