After Second Child's Death, Border Agency Promises Medical Checks for Children in Custody

The agency announced the move on Tuesday night, less than a day after the death of an 8-year-old boy from Guatemala, identified in a statement from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus as Felipe Alonzo-Gomez. Weeks earlier, a 7-year-old girl from the same country, Jakelin Caal Maquin, died in Border Patrol custody.

In addition to the medical checks, Customs and Border Protection said that it was reviewing its policies regarding children in its custody and exploring ways to “relieve capacity” in New Mexico and part of Texas. Those options include supervised release and working with nonprofit groups to place children in temporary housing.

The agency also provided new details about Felipe’s final days.

According to the agency, Felipe was apprehended with his father around 1 p.m. on Dec. 18, just three miles from the Paso Del Norte Port of Entry in El Paso, Texas.

Two days later, on Dec. 20, they were taken to the El Paso Border Patrol Station, where they showered and received food, juice and water, the agency said. Because of crowding there, they were transported once again, to a Border Patrol station in Alamogordo, New Mexico, around midnight Saturday.

About 9 a.m. Monday, Felipe was taken, with his father, to a nearby hospital, the Gerald Champion Regional Medical Center.

There, hospital staff diagnosed Felipe with a cold, but they held him for observation after discovering that he had a 103-degree fever. He was released with prescriptions for antibiotics and Ibuprofen just before 3 p.m.

Felipe and his father were taken to a highway checkpoint and given a hot meal, and border agents gave Felipe his prescribed medication about 5 p.m. Around 7 p.m., he vomited, but his father declined additional medical assistance when Felipe appeared to be doing better, the agency said.

That account could not be corroborated by Felipe’s father, because he has not yet been identified.

Around 10 p.m., Felipe was lethargic and nauseated again, so agents took him back to the hospital. En route, he vomited and passed out. Hospital staff were unable to revive him, and they declared him dead late Monday evening.

Felipe’s body will be taken to Alamogordo Funeral Home after an autopsy is conducted.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.