Independent Autopsy of Transgender Asylum Seeker Who Died in ICE Custody Shows Signs of Abuse

By Sandra E. Garcia
Nov. 27, 2018

A transgender woman who died in the custody of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency appeared to have been physically abused before her death in May from dehydration, along with complications from H.I.V., according to an independent autopsy released this week.

The finding in the death of the woman, Roxsana Hernandez Rodriguez, 33, who was Honduran and had joined a migrant caravan seeking asylum in the United States, supported ICE’s determination of her cause of death. Still, the conclusion that she was abused raised questions about her treatment during the 16 days she was held. ICE has maintained that she was not abused in its custody.

Other detainees cited in the autopsy report recall that Ms. Hernandez experienced the symptoms of severe dehydration “over multiple days with no medical evaluation or treatment, until she was gravely ill,” the report says.

Ms. Hernandez crossed the border at the San Ysidro port of entry between San Diego and Tijuana on May 9, according to ICE. She died on May 25 at a hospital in New Mexico.

The independent autopsy was performed by Dr. Kris Sperry, a forensic pathologist hired by the Transgender Law Center, a nonprofit civil rights group that is suing ICE on behalf of Ms. Hernandez.

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