Following a February 2020 incident where a pregnant woman was forced to give birth in a California Border Patrol station and then forced to return to the Border Patrol station for postpartum detention after a short trip to the hospital, the ACLU and Jewish Family Service filed a complaint with the DHS Office of the Inspector General (OIG). OIG subsequently investigated and issued a report on the incident, along with recommendations to improve CBP’s processes relating to childbirth. On November 23, 2021, CBP issued its current policy, “Policy Statement and Required Actions Regarding Pregnant, Postpartum, Nursing Individuals, and Infants in Custody.” 

In its October 20, 2022 letter, the ACLU, Jewish Family Services of San Diego, the UCLA Center for Immigration Law and Policy, along with 82 advocacy organizations and 52 medical professionals, urged the Commissioner to expand the current CBP policy to include the following: (1) limit the time people who are pregnant, postpartum, and/or nursing are detained in CBP custody to no more than 12 hours from the initial apprehension, and (2) ensure that people who are pregnant, postpartum, and/or nursing, along with their families, are not transferred back to CBP detention for any reason following discharge from any offsite hospital.

• Initial Complaint to DHS Office of Inspector General from the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties, Jewish Family Services, and Dr. Kay Daniels.
• Report of the DHS Office of Inspector General

Counsel: Shaw Drake, ACLU; Jewish Family Services; and Monika Langarica, UCLA Center for Immigration Law and Policy

Contact: Monika Langarica | UCLA Center for Immigration Law and Policy | langarica@law.ucla.edu

Additional Links:

Send a message to CBP today demanding that pregnant, postpartum, and nursing persons and infants must be released as soon as possible: Uphold the reproductive rights and health of migrants | American Civil Liberties Union (aclu.org)