Virginia has joined a coalition of 22 states urging the Trump administration to reverse a new federal policy ending investigations and public reporting of deaths that occur within 30 days of an immigrant's release from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.
The coalition argues the change reduces transparency and accountability as concerns over medical care and detention conditions continue to mount.
Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones announced Monday that the state had joined the effort, led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, calling on the Department of Homeland Security and ICE to restore reporting requirements established under a 2021 directive, as Virginia Mercury reports.
In a letter sent to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Acting ICE Director David Venturella back on June 25, the attorneys general argued the rollback weakens congressional oversight intended to ensure detainees receive adequate medical care.
"This new policy is a blatant attempt to hide dangerous conditions inside ICE detention centers from the public," James said that same day through a statement. "ICE must ensure that every person in its custody receives basic medical care, safe conditions, and humane treatment. Instead, this administration is trying to evade accountability and operate in darkness as deaths in ICE custody reach historic levels."
Jones said the change comes as reports of abuse and deaths in ICE facilities have increased. "With the disturbing rise in reports of abuse and death in ICE detention facilities in recent months, transparency is more important now than ever," he said, calling the policy "an abhorrent attempt" to avoid accountability.
The policy, adopted in early June, rescinded a Biden-era directive requiring ICE to investigate and report deaths occurring within 30 days of release. The earlier rule was intended to prevent facilities from avoiding scrutiny by releasing critically ill detainees shortly before they died.
In their letter, the attorneys general warned that ending post-release reviews could create "a dangerous incentive" to release seriously ill detainees before their deaths, shielding detention facilities from investigation. They cited the case of Ismael Ayala-Uribe, who died from septic shock after allegedly receiving inadequate medical care while detained. Since January 2025, there have been more than 50 reported deaths in ICE custody, according to the coalition.
DHS has defended the policy, calling it a "common sense" administrative change. The department said ICE is no longer responsible for monitoring or reviewing deaths after an individual leaves its custody and noted that the agency will continue reporting deaths that occur while detainees remain in custody.
