From USAToday:
The young girl was detained last week by Border Patrol agents after illegally crossing the southern border into the United States. She died after suffering from a high fever and seizures, according to federal immigration authorities, who said the father was ultimately at fault.
A Customs and Border Protection official said Friday that the girl was given a cursory, visual medical screening by agents when the group was initially detained. He said water and food were available throughout their stay, but could not confirm whether the girl had any.
The CBP official said the father signed a form indicating his daughter had no medical problems, and he only alerted Border Patrol agents when she started suffering seizures while being transported on a bus from one Border Patrol station to another.
"There were agents on the bus. The father could have brought this issue to their attention sooner," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to fully explain the details of the girl's death.
In the statement from the family’s lawyers on Saturday, they said Jakelin and her father, who speak Q’eqchi’ and do not speak English, were given federal forms to sign that were in English. They said Spanish is the family’s second language.
“It is unacceptable for any government agency to have persons in custody sign documents in a language that they clearly do not understand,” read the statement issued by lawyers Enrique Moreno, Elena Esparza, Lynn Coyle and Christopher Benoit.
The DHS Inspector General has opened an investigation into the case to ensure that all proper steps were taken. But DHS officials made clear that such tragedies will happen when so many people make the long and dangerous trek to enter the U.S. illegally.
"It's heart-wrenching. And my heart goes out to the family," Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said Friday. "This is just a very sad example of the dangers of this journey. This family chose to cross illegally. We’ll continue to look into the situation, but again, I cannot stress enough how dangerous this journey is when migrants choose to come here illegally.”
LINK:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news...pute-border-patrols-account-death/2326221002/
Does anyone know if BORSTAR was involved, or did they just put her on a bus for a 90 mile ride and wish her good luck? It sounds like BORSTAR deals with these kinds of emergencies.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Border_Patrol,_Search,_Trauma_and_Rescue
Border Patrol, Search, Trauma and Rescue
The
Border Patrol Search, Trauma, and Rescue Unit (
BORSTAR) is a specialized unit of the
United States Border Patrol trained in emergency search and rescue. It primarily assists injured or stranded migrants who enter the United States illegally from Mexico at remote desert locations.
The BORSTAR national headquarters is in
El Paso, Texas, and units are stationed in each southwest Border Patrol sector.
[1][2]
History[edit]
BORSTAR training, 2006
BORSTAR diver surveys the bridge of sunken ship
Black Bart off the coast of
Panama City, Florida.
Rappelling on
Mount Lemmon, 2011
Officials in the Border Patrol's San Diego Sector asked for permission to start a rescue team to help agents and civilians who needed assistance. BORSTAR was created in 1996 in response to the growing number of
migrant deaths along the
Mexico–United States border.
In 1999, a BORSTAR training academy opened in
Tucson, Arizona, and in 2001, the unit added rescue dogs.
[1][2]
Training[edit]
BORSTAR is composed of volunteer agents from the U.S. Border Patrol. After serving two years, agents may apply to attend the five-week training course. BORSTAR members learn rescue techniques, land navigation, communications, teamwork, tactical medicine, swiftwater rescue, and air operations. They also obtain their basic-level certification as an Emergency Medical Technician. Some members receive additional specialized training which may include watercraft rescue, boat operations, cold weather operations, paramedic training, and SCUBA diving.
[1]
Scope of operations[edit]
In addition to assisting migrants, BORSTAR units have helped hikers, motorists, and other Border Patrol agents in need of rescue.
[2] BORSTAR units have responded to
FEMA requests for assistance, including
Hurricane Katrina rescue operations.
[3]
The Border Patrol states that "situations vary in difficulty from simply locating victims and providing them with water to complex rescues requiring agents to rappel into remote canyons to assist victims and extract them by helicopter."
[1]