POMPANO BEACH, Fla. – Two South Florida congresswomen toured an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility Friday as questions mount over the death of a Haitian woman detained there.
Marie Ange Blaise, 44, died at the Broward Transitional Center in Pompano Beach last Friday.
U.S. Reps. Frederica Wilson and Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, both Democrats, visited the facility Friday morning.
They called for a formal investigation into Blaise’s death and used her death to highlight what they call “onerous” conditions in similar facilities.
The congresswomen were inside the facility for about an hour.
They said they spoke to a few people, but characterized their trip as “hostile,” saying staff were not inclined to answer detailed questions about Blaise’s death.
Blaise reportedly told three other women at the facility that she was having chest pains the day of her death.
The congresswomen said that there are not enough medical facilities and protocols that might have helped her.
“Truthfully, it should be a simple conversation: ‘This is our protocol. This is what we did so we can answer it,’” Cherfilus-McCormick, who is Haitian-American, said. “Never in my life have we asked about protocol and they refused and became hostile. I’ve never seen that before.”
While the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is in charge of the facility, it’s operated by the private prison company GEO Group.
The Boca Raton-based company has not returned Local 10 News’ request for comment.
ICE officials say medical care, including emergency services, is available 24/7, but the congresswomen said there was no way to verify that.
