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Pediatrician Anita Patel speaks during a Tuesday press conference in San Antonio. Congressman Joaquin Castro stands behind her. Credit: Michael Karlis<\/p>\nPediatrician Anita Patel speaks during a Tuesday press conference in San Antonio. Congressman Joaquin Castro stands behind her. Credit: Michael Karlis<\/p>\n
A pediatric critical care doctor from Children\u2019s National Hospital in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday decried conditions inside the immigrant prison camp in Dilley, an hour southwest of San Antonio, as child abuse and a violation of human rights.<\/p>\n
Dr. Anita K. Patel visited the South Texas Family Residential Center as part of a delegation led by U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-San Antonio. She told reporters during a downtown San Antonio press conference that at least seven children have either died while in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody or shortly after their release. <\/p>\n
The physician said she fears that number will grow if the \u201cDilley trailer prison,\u201d as Castro calls it, isn\u2019t shut down.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese are not just diagnoses, these are cruel harms inflicted upon children,\u201d Patel said. \u201cChildren like Liam Ramos, who is exhibiting signs of post-traumatic stress disorder to this day. Five-year-old Alexander, who was found in his cell with his mother\u2019s pants cord wrapped around his neck because he did not want to be in detention anymore. And 9-year-old Kinec, a beautiful child with autism, whose autism became so severely exacerbated that he was not allowed to go outside anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patel said children inside the detention center \u2014\u00a0which was shuttered during the Biden administration and reopened during President Donald Trump\u2019s second term \u2014\u00a0also face physical forms of child abuse. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe inadequate vetting, inadequate food and inadequate water \u2026. these all represent child abuse, and they also represent human rights violations as defined by the United Nations,\u201d she added. <\/p>\n
Tuesday marked the seventh time Castro has visited the Dilley detention center. However, it marks the first time that a pediatrician has accompanied him to provide an assessment of the conditions inside.<\/p>\n
As of press time, 539 individuals are locked up in Dilley, according to details shared by Castro\u2019s delegation. That total includes 84 families, 112 children and four pregnant women. The number of incarcerated children at the camp has jumped from 96 in May, the congressman added. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey characterized them as low-level non-criminals,\u201d U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., a member of the delegation, told reporters at the press conference. \u201cSo, it seems, their only crime is that they exist.\u201d<\/p>\n
Castro told reporters that each subsequent visit he\u2019s paid to the prison camp has become more restrictive. He said he was only able to talk to one child on Tuesday\u2019s visit, a 16-year-old who was detained while on her way to church with a friend in San Antonio.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey took her to Crosspoint, the processing center,\u201d Castro said. \u201cThey told her dad that they were going to send her out of state if he didn\u2019t come pick her up, and that he could come pick her up and take her home. When he showed up to pick her up, they took him in as well. And now they\u2019re both at the Dilley trailer prison.\u201d<\/p>\n
Castro didn\u2019t just have harsh words about the Dilley camp, however.<\/p>\n
On Tuesday, Castro also visited San Antonio\u2019s ICE check-in processing center at 3523 Crosspoint Drive, where he said immigration agents continue to violate migrants\u2019 rights. <\/p>\n
\u201c[The 16-year-old girl] mentioned that in that room, where people are detained, there are cameras that can see the entire room,\u201d the congressman said. \u201cNot only is there a camera in the main room, but there\u2019s a camera that\u2019s pointed at the place where people use the restroom. That\u2019s how dehumanizing the situation is for folks.\u201d\u200b<\/p>\n
A digital sign that\u2019s supposed to inform detained migrants of their rights at the Crosspoint processing center is in Mandarin Chinese, Castro said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWell, first of all, there\u2019s hardly anyone there that is speaking Mandarin or another language like that,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Castro said he experienced a similar incident when he picked up the phone for the National Rape Abuse Hotline at the Dilley detention center and was only able to obtain communication in either Mandarin or some other \u201cAsian language.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a system that is corrupt, that is duplicitous, that is reckless, and this detention center, the Dilley detention center, should absolutely be shut down, and we\u2019re committed to working towards that,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
Sign Up for SA Current newsletters.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Follow us:\u00a0Apple News<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Google News<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0NewsBreak<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Reddit<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Facebook\u00a0<\/a>| Twitter<\/a>\u00a0| Or sign up for our\u00a0RSS Feed<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Related Stories<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\tDr. Anita Patel\u2019s comments came after she visited the immigrant detention center near San Antonio as part of a delegation led by U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro. \t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"Pediatrician](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1785279750_571_IMG_2773.jpg\")
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