A Tragic Death at an ICE Detention Facility in Louisiana
A second detainee has died within two months at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Louisiana, raising serious concerns about the conditions at the facility. The incident occurred at the Winn Correctional Center in Winnfield, where a recent inspection report revealed unsanitary conditions, inadequate medical care, and instances of excessive force.
Mamuka Artmeladze, a 43-year-old man from Georgia, was found unresponsive on June 4 at the facility. According to an announcement by ICE, staff immediately initiated lifesaving measures before he was transported by ambulance to a local hospital. He was pronounced dead less than an hour later. The circumstances surrounding his death remain unclear, and the cause of death is still pending an autopsy. Artmeladze had been detained at the facility for nearly four months. The center, managed by the Winn Parish Sheriff’s Office and the ICE contractor LaSalle Corrections, holds over 1,500 male detainees, most of whom do not have criminal records.
Artmeladze entered the United States illegally on an unknown date. After being encountered by the Border Patrol in September 2022, he was allowed to temporarily remain in the country under ICE supervision. However, he was arrested in Alabama in February after ICE determined that he no longer had lawful status to stay in the U.S. His death marks the 19th detainee death in ICE custody since January 1, and the second at the Winn facility since April 11.
The other death at the facility involved Alejandro Cabrera Clemente, a 49-year-old man from Mexico who had recently lived in Tennessee. He was found unresponsive during a security check on April 11, and staff attempted to resuscitate him. He was taken to the same hospital as Artmeladze, where he died. A coroner’s report indicated that Cabrera died from natural causes due to cardiovascular disease. The report noted that he had experienced symptoms such as coughing and wheezing earlier that day but claimed to be fine and went back to sleep.
According to a separate ICE report, detainees alerted nursing staff to Cabrera’s unresponsiveness. They found him with left-sided facial droop and discolored skin due to low blood oxygen. During his time in detention, Cabrera received treatment for high blood pressure and other medical issues.
These tragic events have intensified scrutiny over whether ICE detention facilities are neglecting the medical needs of detainees and forcing them to live in inhumane conditions. ICE has denied these allegations. However, the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General recently issued a report following an unannounced inspection of the Winn facility. The report highlighted several violations of standards related to environmental health and safety, food service, use-of-force, and medical care.
The inspection revealed issues such as water leaking through kitchen vents, holes and exposed insulation in the intake building’s ceiling, and food stored in freezers above the required temperatures. Medical staff were also found to have failed to maintain updated treatment documents and laboratory testing records, which could negatively impact detainee health and safety.
The report also documented violations of use-of-force policies. For example, one officer placed a detainee in a banned chokehold, while another officer stabbed a detainee’s thumb with a pen after the detainee refused to remove his hand from a door. In response, ICE agreed with nine recommendations to improve conditions at the facility and had already implemented several of them.
Concerns About Detention Conditions
The deaths of Artmeladze and Cabrera have sparked renewed debate about the treatment of detainees in U.S. immigration facilities. Advocacy groups and watchdog organizations have called for greater transparency and accountability, emphasizing the need for improved medical care and living conditions. Meanwhile, ICE continues to defend its operations, stating that it is committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of all detainees.
As the investigation into Artmeladze’s death progresses, questions remain about the broader systemic issues within the U.S. immigration detention system. With more than 1,500 detainees held at the Winn facility, the situation underscores the urgent need for reform and oversight to prevent further tragedies.
