Dem Rep Jayapal Amplifies Anti-ICE Story With Holes Big Enough to Drive a Bus Through

June 27, 2025

A report by the Nashville Banner and Nashville Noticias has drawn national attention after detailing the case of Iris Dayana Monterroso-Lemus, a pregnant Guatemalan national who was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Tennessee earlier this year and later deported.

According to the report, Monterroso-Lemus claimed she miscarried at a Louisiana ICE facility due to lack of prenatal care.

Monterroso-Lemus was arrested on March 26 in Lenoir City, Tennessee.

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Following her arrest, she was transferred multiple times between Illinois, Tennessee, and Alabama, before ultimately being held at Richwood Correctional Center in Louisiana in early April.

Medical records cited in the report state she was four to five weeks pregnant at the time she entered ICE custody.

Monterroso-Lemus alleged that she requested medical help for days while experiencing abdominal pain and other symptoms but received no assistance until she was transported to Ochsner LSU Health – Monroe Medical Center on April 29.

According to clinical notes, she complained of no fetal movement, abdominal pain, and increased vaginal discharge for three days prior to hospitalization.

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She delivered a stillborn child that day.

The pregnancy was classified as complicated by a lack of prenatal care.

“She states she told the doctor where she is at that this pregnancy didn’t feel right a couple days ago, but nothing was done,” the medical report reads.

Monterroso-Lemus, 37 at the time, was considered to have had a high-risk pregnancy.

Notably, she reportedly sought treatment for pelvic pain in February, prior to her arrest by ICE.

The report from Not the Bee raised further questions about her medical history and whether underlying health conditions may have contributed to the miscarriage.

The case has prompted criticism of ICE and led to renewed scrutiny of conditions at Richwood Correctional Center, a privately operated facility previously flagged in a 2023 inspection report. U.S.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) highlighted the case on social media in May as part of broader criticism of the Trump administration’s immigration policies.

A pregnant woman lost her baby after ICE refused to give her prenatal care.

She begged for help and was denied. She was fed food full of cockroaches. She was forced to sleep on the floor.

This is absolutely disgusting and we should all be outraged. https://t.co/AtYPFMfZ6z

— Rep. Pramila Jayapal (@RepJayapal) June 24, 2025

“The Nashville Banner” tied Monterroso-Lemus’s experience to immigration enforcement actions under President Donald Trump, including joint operations between ICE and the Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) that resulted in hundreds of arrests in predominantly Latino neighborhoods in early May.

During a traffic enforcement operation from May 3–4, the THP conducted 588 stops, resulting in 196 arrests of undocumented individuals.

According to the report, fewer than half of those arrested had prior criminal records.

The story has also raised questions about Monterroso-Lemus’s background.

Reports indicate she had been living in the U.S. for over a decade and has six children, two of whom were in the custody of her mother in the United States.

Her boyfriend, Gary Bivens, started a GoFundMe page that has raised over $6,000 for medical and transportation expenses.

According to International Business Times UK, a warrant was issued for Monterroso-Lemus due to her failure to appear at a custody hearing concerning one or more of her children.

Details about her immigration status, past encounters with the legal system, and the father(s) of her children remain unclear.

Despite extensive coverage, many aspects of the case remain unverified outside of the accounts of Monterroso-Lemus and Bivens.

There has been no public comment from her mother, who retains custody of two of her children.

No official investigation findings have been released to corroborate the full scope of the claims made in media reports.

Following the public reaction, ICE Acting Director Todd M. Lyons confirmed that nine detainees have died in ICE custody since President Trump returned to office.

The agency has not commented on Monterroso-Lemus’s specific medical care or the conditions of her detainment but continues to face questions regarding healthcare access for detained individuals, particularly pregnant women.

Critics of the coverage, including Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin, pushed back against the narrative.

Absolutely FALSE. She had FULL medical, prenatal care. We have documentation to show it.

Iris Dayana Monterroso-Lemus, 37, is a citizen of Guatemala who has been arrested multiple times for child abuse and is wanted on an active warrant for homicide. https://t.co/5tXf8LUkJY

— Tricia McLaughlin (@TriciaOhio) June 25, 2025