Man died at Tacoma immigration detention center of natural causes, medical examiner says
A 61-year-old man found dead in his cell earlier this year at the privately-run federal immigration detention center in Tacoma died of natural causes, the Pierce County medical examiner announced Monday.
Charles Leo Daniel, a citizen of Trinidad and Tobago, died March 7 of hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, according to the medical examiner’s office. Staff at the Northwest ICE Processing Center found him slumped off his bed that morning and moved him to a hallway to perform medical aid. Tacoma Fire Department personnel tried to resuscitate him when they arrived, but he was pronounced dead at the facility.
Daniel, who came to the NWIPC in April 2020 after serving an 18-year prison sentence for a 2003 murder conviction in King County Superior Court, was held in solitary confinement at the time of his death. Researchers from the University of Washington’s Center for Human Rights found that Daniel had spent 1,244 days in solitary confinement in two periods separated by two days.
Officials from the GEO Group, the multibillion-dollar company that runs the facility, have said that Daniel requested to be housed alone and away from the general population when he was transferred to the NWIPC. To ensure the decision to house him in solitary confinement was safe, spokesperson Christopher Ferreira said, Daniel’s mental health was evaluated by the ICE Health Services Corps.
The death prompted immigrant rights groups La Resistencia and Tsuru for Solidarity to call for an independent investigation into the circumstances. Members set up an encampment outside the facility at 1623 E. J St. for weeks, monitoring incidents such as a fire and reported suicide attempts inside while also engaging in hunger strikes to protest conditions for detained immigrants.
In April, a dozen U.S. senators sent a letter to top immigration and homeland security leaders calling for an end to the misuse of solitary confinement. Democratic Sen. Patty Murray’s office said the letter came amid serious concerns about the use of solitary confinement after Daniel’s death.
On Monday, Maru Mora Villalpando, a founder of La Resistencia, told KNKX that the medical examiner’s report on Daniel’s death was lacking in details, and she said ICE and GEO are responsible for the health of those in their custody.
Two other deaths have been reported at the facility since it opened in 2004, according to ICE records. In 2006, a 42-year-old man died of coronary artery disease. In 2018, a 40-year-old man held in solitary confinement died by suicide.
In a report on Daniel’s death, ICE stated that the registered nurse who did Daniel’s intake screening in April 2020 documented a medical history of kidney stones and mild hypertension. Daniel had normal vital signs except for slightly elevated blood pressure. He reported having previously been hospitalized for his mental health and was taking an antidepressant.
Four days after the intake screening, an advanced-practice provider diagnosed Daniel with stage two hypertension without diabetes. According to ICE, Daniel agreed to start medication but refused medical consent for it after one week.
Over the next three years, ICE said medical staff monitored Daniel’s blood pressure when he consented and ordered medication for treatment as well as lab testing, and they told him of the risks of untreated hypertension, but he repeatedly refused medical services and medication. ICE said he completed more than 60 medical consent refusal forms. When he did consent to blood pressure tests, results ranged from 120/80 mmHg to 209/116 mmHg.
A psychiatrist evaluated Daniel about 20 days after he was detained at the NWIPC and documented that he had a history of delusional disorder and was treated with an antipsychotic for a short period of time, but Daniel also reportedly refused that medication. His antidepressant was decreased from daily to three times a week in accordance with a prior medication order from the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla.
Daniel continued to be evaluated monthly until September 2021, when future appointments were canceled due to his repeated medication refusals. ICE said Daniel’s delusions persisted throughout his detainment, but he didn’t agree with the psychiatrist’s diagnosis.
In August 2023, a behavioral health provider added a significant mental illness alert in Daniel’s medical record. It’s unclear what led to the alert being documented. Because of the alert and his placement in solitary confinement, behavioral health providers began doing daily evaluations of Daniel instead of weekly. Daniel continued to deny suicidal ideations.
On the day of Daniel’s death, a registered nurse saw him at 5:30 a.m. for the segregation medical round and documented he was sitting in his room and answered questions appropriately.
At about 10:05 a.m., a behavioral health provider conducted Daniel’s daily evaluation and noted he presented as smiling, pleasant and non-distressed. He denied any suicidal ideations. At 10:34 a.m., a staff member announced via radio, “Man down,” in Daniel’s housing unit. Health staff arrived about three minutes later and began chest compressions.
