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U.S. NEWS Friday 6 december 2019

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Report: Teen who died in U.S.

custody unresponsive for hours

HOUSTON (AP) — Video through the window but reduced the number of
showing the U.S. Border Pa- didn't go inside. people in its custody --
trol cell where a 16-year- Police photos show a large largely due to the rollout
old from Guatemala died pool of blood around Car- of policies such as "Remain
of the flu shows the teen los' head. in Mexico," in which the
writhing and collapsing on U.S. Customs and Border U.S. government has sent
the floor for hours before he Protection issued a state- more than 55,000 people
was found dead. ment Thursday saying it back across the border
The footage published could not discuss specifics to await their court cases.
Thursday by ProPublica of Carlos' death due to an Thousands of those people This May 20, 2019 photo shows the Border Patrol Station in
calls into question the Bor- ongoing investigation, but are now waiting in squalid Weslaco, Texas. Associated Press
der Patrol's treatment of that the agency and the border camps.q
Carlos Hernandez Vasquez, Department of Homeland
who was found dead May Security "are looking into
20. all aspects of this case to
According to ProPublica, ensure all procedures were
Carlos staggered to the toi- followed."
let in his cell in the middle But CBP's former acting
of the night at the Border commissioner, John Sand-
Patrol station in Weslaco, ers, said he believed the
Texas, and collapsed near- U.S. government "could
by. He remained still for have done more" to pre-
more than four hours until vent the deaths of Carlos
his cellmate awakened at and at least five other chil-
6:05 a.m. and discovered dren who died after being
him on the floor. apprehended by border
The cellmate quickly got agents.
the attention of a Border Sanders resigned as the
Patrol agent, followed Border Patrol was detaining
shortly by a physician's as- thousands of people at a
sistant who attempted a time, many for longer than
single chest compression. the agency's own 72-hour
Weslaco police reports ob- deadline, sometimes for
tained by ProPublica say weeks at a time. As border
the physician's assistant crossings surged this spring,
quickly determined Carlos President Donald Trump's
was dead. administration sought to
The Border Patrol's state- hold people for longer to
ment on the day of Carlos' end what it derided as the
death says the teenager "catch and release" of im-
was "found unresponsive migrant families.
this morning during a wel- But the Border Patrol was
fare check." not equipped to de-
The video shows Carlos tain people for that long.
stopped moving at about Reports of people jam-
1:39 a.m. on May 20, 15 packed into cells without
minutes after he toppled drinkable water or show-
forward and landed face- ers sparked national out-
first on the cell's concrete rage. One group of lawyers
floor. Border Patrol logs say that visited a Border Patrol
an agent performed a wel- station in Clint, Texas, de-
fare check at 2:02 a.m., scribed seeing hungry chil-
4:09 a.m., and 5:05 a.m. dren trying to care for each
Dr. Norma Jean Farley, the other and one 4-year-old
forensic pathologist who with matted hair who had
performed the autopsy, gone without a shower for
told ProPublica that she days.
was told the agent looked The Border Patrol has since