Murray Blasts Inadequate DHS Response to Oversight Letter on Pregnant Women in ICE Detention

Response reveals hundreds of pregnant, postpartum, or nursing women have been detained and deported since 2025

***COVER LETTER HERE ***

***RESPONSES HERE***

Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member and former Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, issued the following statement blasting former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's inadequate response to an oversight letter Murray led with Senate colleagues in September. The lawmakers urged DHS to follow its own standards and stop detaining pregnant women. They also demanded information about the detention and treatment of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody. In their highly delayed response, the Department failed to fully answer key questions about the number of pregnant women currently detained and the care they are receiving.

In their letter, the senators wrote, "ICE's own standards are unambiguous on the detention, monitoring, and treatment of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women in detention. ICE Directive 11032.4, Identification and Monitoring of Pregnant, Postpartum, or Nursing Individuals (2021 Pregnancy Directive), states that ICE should not detain pregnant, postpartum, or nursing individuals except under very limited circumstances." Yet, according to DHS's response, they reportedly have not been living up to their own standards and as of February 16, 2026, there were 121 pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women detained. Also, according to their response ICE has deported 363 pregnant, postpartum, or nursing women between January 1, 2025 and February 16, 2026.

"There is absolutely no justification for detaining and shackling pregnant women-but Donald Trump and Republicans don't seem to care-even if treating pregnant women like violent criminals puts their health in danger. Once again, the only logic behind Stephen Miller's outrageous immigration crackdown appears to be cruelty for cruelty's sake. The Trump Administration's barbaric treatment of pregnant women in immigration custody is completely unconscionable and according to their responses to our letter, they're going against their own standards," said Senator Murray. "We demanded accountability and clarity from then-Secretary Noem, and she left us with more questions than answers. We must ensure all pregnant women in custody are treated humanely and with respect. I will continue to fight against the gross mistreatment of pregnant women in immigration detention."

"One pregnant, nursing, or postpartum woman in immigration detention is one too many, and DHS is flagrantly disregarding its own guidance not to detain these women," said Jennifer Ibañez Whitlock, Senior Policy Counsel for the National Immigration Law Center. "Since this administration took office, we've seen repeated reports of women suffering from miscarriages, separation from their infants, and medical distress. Not a single taxpayer dollar should go toward funding the abuse of our families and neighbors, and we support Senator Murray's commonsense efforts to withhold funding for rogue agencies."

"This data reveals a significant crisis of pregnant, postpartum, and lactating women in detention," said Zain Lakhani, Director of Migrant Rights and Justice at the Women's Refugee Commission (WRC). "WRC has documented numerous instances of grossly insufficient food and lack of access to medical care, including for serious and even life-threatening pregnancy complications. The 16 documented miscarriages in detention also confirm what WRC has long warned: these women are being detained in conditions that cannot support their pregnancies. ICE must take immediate steps to ensure that its own policies to protect these vulnerable women are enforced."

Senator Murray has long fought against the mistreatment of pregnant women in detention, and leads legislation-the Stop Shackling and Detaining Pregnant Women Act-that would provide permanent safeguards for pregnant and postpartum women in ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody. She first introduced the legislation in 2018 during the 115^th Congress, and reintroduced it in 2019-on the heels of a Washington Post report about a woman in ICE custody whose pregnancy ended in a stillbirth after she went into labor prematurely-2023, and 2025 alongside Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia (D, TX-29), who leads companion legislation in the House of Representatives.

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