Lawmakers want better treatment for detainees {Illegal Aliens }

AP via SFGate ^ | 5/14/8 | EILEEN SULLIVAN, Associated Press Writer

[SmithL]

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Top lawmakers on the House Judiciary Committee are demanding more information from the Homeland Security Department about medical treatment provided to illegal immigrants detained in the U.S.

Recent news reports have detailed insufficient — and in some cases negligent — medical treatment for immigrant detainees over the past five years. The reports have sparked renewed interest in an issue that has been raised for years by human rights groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a California Democrat who has held one hearing on the topic, said details she has heard about detainees' treatment are "horrifying." It "fails to meet international standards, and it makes me quite ashamed," Lofgren said Wednesday. She is the chairwoman of the Judiciary's immigration subcommittee.

Congress is considering several bills that call for improvements in detainee conditions and would require more accountability from the Homeland Security Department. For instance, Sen. Joseph Lieberman, a Connecticut independent, reintroduced a bill this week that he proposed in 2006.

Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, the Homeland Security agency that oversees immigrant detentions, disputes many of the allegations laid out in the news reports, including a four-part Washington Post series that concluded Wednesday.

That agency spends $100 million a year on detainee health care which is twice as much as it spent a few years ago, ICE spokeswoman Kelly Nantel said. Since ICE was formed in 2003, 71 people out of 1.5 million have died in its custody, she said.

"Every death in custody — any death in custody — is a regrettable, sad occurrence," Nantel said. "It is not an indication of a broken system."

Lofgren disagreed, saying, "ICE has a veracity problem.

[calcowgirl]

Thanks very much for filling in the blanks.

[afnamvet]

Detain the idiot Lofgren. Bill the home country of these illegals for their court costs, incarceration, medical care and deportation expenses or subtract the amounts from their foreign aid.

[SwinneySwitch]

“Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a California Democrat who has held one hearing on the topic, said details she has heard about detainees’ treatment are “horrifying.” It “fails to meet international standards, and it makes me quite ashamed,”

In a related story:

61 illegal immigrants detained in South L.A., officials say

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2016004/posts