1. United States
2. Texas
3. Letter

I write with outrage and profound sorrow to demand immediate, comprehensive action regarding the increasing number of deaths in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Once again, another human life has been lost under U.S. government detention. On January 20, 2026, 41-year-old Jean Wilson Brutus, a Haitian man, died less than 24 hours after being taken into ICE custody at Newark’s Delaney Hall. ICE took an entire week to even acknowledge his death. This delay in transparency is unconscionable and intolerable. This tragic death is not an isolated incident but part of a deepening pattern of neglect, abuse, and lethal disregard for human life within ICE’s detention system. Investigations show that: • At least 32 people died in ICE custody in 2025, making it the deadliest year for ICE detainees in more than two decades. • Multiple deaths in early 2026, including cases ruled homicides by medical examiners, signal a continued crisis. These are not mere statistics — these are fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, and community members whose deaths are the direct responsibility of the U.S. government. The lack of timely reporting, independent oversight, transparent investigations, and accountability reflects more than systemic failure: it reflects a moral failure. Congress must act immediately. We demand: 1. Independent, transparent investigations into every death in ICE custody — with public reporting. 2. Immediate suspension of detention policies that have led to overcrowding, neglect, and preventable deaths. 3. Emergency legislation to mandate proper medical care, mental health support, and humane conditions for all persons detained. 4. Appropriate disciplinary and legal consequences for federal officials whose actions or negligence contributed to these deaths. 5. Oversight hearings to examine ICE policies, training, inspections, and chain-of-command accountability. If the United States is to remain true to its values of human dignity and fundamental rights, Congress cannot allow these deaths to continue without action. Justice must not be an afterthought. Accountability cannot wait. Lives — and U.S. moral authority — depend on your response.