Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.
Pregnant woman hospitalized after ICE detention in Burlington
"Their goal is really just to detain as many people as possible wherever they find them," the woman's lawyer said.
A pregnant Massachusetts woman was hospitalized earlier this month after her condition worsened while being held at an ICE facility in Burlington, according to her lawyer and testimony from a doctor who treated her.
Djeniffer Benvinda Ribeiro Semedo, a 22-year-old woman from Cape Verde, was approximately 24 weeks pregnant when she was picked up by ICE agents at Brockton District Court on Feb. 11. Ribeiro Semedo’s physical condition “deteriorated rapidly” at the ICE field office in Burlington, a facility not designed for long-term detentions. After being admitted to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, a doctor who cared for her determined that her detention put her at a higher risk of dangerous pregnancy complications, according to court documents.
Advertisement:
Ribeiro Semedo was eventually released from ICE custody last week after her hospitalization, when her lawyer filed a habeas petition challenging the legality of her detention.
Carl Hurvich, the immigration lawyer representing Ribeiro Semedo, called her detention one of the “more extreme” examples of the Trump administration’s policies he has seen.
“Even in comparison with the past Trump administration, their goal is really just to detain as many people as possible wherever they find them. There’s really no type of judgment being made as to whether there’s a public interest in keeping someone in a facility,” he told Boston.com.
Advertisement:
Ribeiro Semedo came to the U.S. in 2015 as a beneficiary of her mother’s lawful permanent resident status. Her mother’s lawful status was eventually terminated, putting Ribeiro Semedo’s immigration status in jeopardy, according to the petition.
In 2024, she was charged with assault and battery after Brockton police responded to an altercation between her and her then-boyfriend. Ribeiro Semedo allegedly used part of a shattered glass decoration to strike her then-boyfriend. He denied injury at the scene, according to a police report. Ribeiro Semedo has denied the allegations against her.
Ribeiro Semedo was arraigned in April 2024 on those charges and released on personal recognizance. The court issued a default warrant after she failed to appear at a pretrial hearing. The court recalled the warrant earlier this month after she voluntarily appeared at a hearing. The court did not impose bail and expressed no concerns that she posed a flight risk, according to court documents.
As she attempted to leave the courthouse, ICE agents placed her in handcuffs and ankle shackles. They brought her to the Burlington field office, where she was held for about three days. She was given little information about the basis for her detention and how long she may be held. Ribeiro Semedo was also denied “meaningful access” to her family and legal counsel, according to the petition.
Advertisement:
While detained in Burlington, Ribeiro Semedo “developed worsening abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and decreased fetal movement,” according to the petition. Her food options were reportedly minimal and not nutritious, and they worsened her abdominal pains even more. ICE officials allegedly delayed transferring her to a hospital despite repeated requests for medical attention, according to the petition. She was eventually brought to Lahey Medical Center and then Beth Israel.
Blair Wylie, chief of obstetrics and gynecology at Beth Israel, submitted testimony about Ribeiro Semedo’s condition at the hospital. Wylie observed the symptoms that developed while Ribeiro Semedo was detained and heard from her that she had had a normal pregnancy before her detention. At Beth Israel, doctors found evidence of gallstones, anemia, and conditions that could trigger preterm labor, according to Wylie’s testimony.
“The Patient reports feeling stressed, isolated from family, uncertain and depressed, and the Patient has been observed crying and upset on multiple occasions since admission,” Wylie testified.
Ribeiro Semedo needs access to a nutritious diet, and ongoing stress and depression increase the risk of pregnancy complications, according to Wylie. Ribeiro Semedo’s detention in the ICE facility “places her at higher risk of preterm labor and other pregnancy complications,” she testified.
Advertisement:
ICE agents continued to treat Ribeiro Semedo as a detainee at Beth Israel, imposing “extreme restrictions” on her ability to see anyone in person. At one point, a doctor attempted to contact Ribeiro Semedo’s family for an “urgent medical discussion,” but an ICE agent intervened and prevented the conversation from happening, according to the petition.
Hurvich contended that Ribeiro Semedo’s detention was unlawful, citing an ICE policy from 2021 that dictates that the agency should not detain people known to be pregnant, postpartum, or nursing unless release is prohibited by law or “exceptional circumstances” exist.
Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, defended the actions of ICE in a statement to The Boston Globe last week. She said that it is “exceedingly rare” for ICE to detain a pregnant person and said that Ribeiro Semedo actually received adequate care while in custody.
“This is the best health care many of these individuals have received in their entire lives,” McLaughlin told the paper.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com