8-year-old migrant girl dies in Texas while in Border Patrol custody

An 8-year-old girl died Wednesday in Border Patrol custody, Fox News has learned.  This is a rare occurrence with her death appearing to be the first death of a migrant child in Border Patrol custody since 2019. 

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) confirmed that the 8-year-old migrant girl died after suffering from medical issues while being detained at a Border Patrol station in Harlingen, a city in South Texas.

“Emergency Medical Services were called to the station and transported her to the local hospital where she was pronounced dead,” the statement said. The statement didn’t provide further detail on the nature of the child’s medical emergency. 

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This is the second migrant minor death in federal custody in a week, CBP said. Last Friday, May 12, a 17-year-old Honduran boy, who had arrived in the U.S. as an unaccompanied child, died of a seizure while staying at a child-welfare shelter in Florida run by the Department of Health and Human Services.

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In 2019, former President Donald Trump faced backlash for his immigration polices after a 16-year-old Guatemalan boy died after falling ill in a government shelter in Texas. 

The agency said it is conducting an investigation into the death of the girl. Her name and country of origin were not released.

The death comes as Title 42 was lifted on May 11 which allowed US officials to turn away migrants who came to the U.S.-Mexico border because of health concerns. This was established during the pandemic and was put in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19. 

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 The border saw a surge in the days leading up to that order’s expiration to over 10,000 a day, but officials say numbers have decreased by more than 50% since then.