ÃÛÌÒÓ°ÏñAV

Emmanuel Damas, 56, died while in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, after struggling to receive timely medical care for a worsening toothache, Chandler City Councilwoman Christine Ellis told the ÃÛÌÒÓ°ÏñAV Tuesday afternoon.

Ellis, a registered nurse who is Haitian-American, said she is outraged and called for an investigation into Damas' death, which she said came weeks after the man first complained of tooth pain to Florence staff.

"Nobody should die from a toothache," Ellis said. "Something has to be done."

ICE had not acknowledged Damas' death as of Wednesday morning.

"Once we have something to share, we will provide," ICE spokeswoman Yasmeen Pitts O'Keefe said in a Tuesday email, in response to the Star's query.

Damas first told Florence staff about his toothache Feb. 12 and was given only ibuprofen, said Ellis, who is also vice mayor of Chandler.

"He was complaining for almost two weeks straight, until he collapsed and got septic from the infection," Ellis told the Star. He was transferred to a Scottsdale hospital sometime last week, she said.

Ellis said she learned the details of Damas' death from his family members, who provided her images of Damas unconscious and intubated in an intensive care unit. Ellis shared the images in a Tuesday Instagram .Ìý

Damas' family members said another detainee reported hearing Florence staff "laughing and saying he was faking," as Damas cried for help, Ellis recounted to the Star.

At least 32 people died in ICE custody last year, triple the number of deaths in 2024, according to a Feb. 13 from Democratic U.S. senators to leadership at ICE and its parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security.

Damas is the 10th detainee to die in ICE custody so far in 2026. ICE has announced eight of the deaths, and local politicians notified the public about the March 2 death of Damas and the of Mexican national Alberto Gutierrez Reyes in a California ICE detention center.Ìý

Damas' "reported struggle to receive timely medical attention before being transferred to a hospital raises serious and painful concerns about the quality of care provided to individuals in custody," wrote Ellis, also a member of the National Haitian American Elected Officials Network's executive board, in the Instagram post.

CoreCivic, the private, for-profit company that runs Florence Correctional Center, referred the Star to ICE.

Worsening detention conditions

Human rights advocates have long warned of inadequate medical care in ICE detention facilities, a problem advocates say is worsening amid the soaring number of people in ICE detention — which is civil detention, not intended as punishment for any crime.

ICE held about 40,000 people in detention when President Donald Trump took office last year, and the number has exploded to a record 71,0000 since then.

Damas — who has a pending asylum claim, and entered the U.S. via the Biden-era humanitarian parole program for Haitian immigrants — was taken into ICE custody in Boston in September 2025, Ellis said.

After multiple transfers to ICE detention centers across the U.S. — from Boston, to New York, to Texas — he was transferred to Florence about four months ago, she said.

The multiple cross-country transfers many detainees are experiencing amount to "abusive" treatment, Ellis said.

"They really have to get to the point where they treat people with dignity," she said. "This moving people from place to place — it's a form of, not only bullying, but also a form of psychological warfare against that person. ...

"You keep moving them around, they're foreign, they don't know where they are — you want them to give up on life. Literally, that's what they’re trying to do," she said, noting those transfers also put detainees' family "in trauma."

A January from the Arizona-based Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project highlighted medical and behavioral-health care failures and neglect at Arizona's Eloy Detention Center, including wait times of six months or more for dental care and denial of referrals for root canals, instead only offering tooth extraction.

While ICE's detention say detainees should get "medically necessary and appropriate" dental care, advocates say those standards are often ignored, and detainees in pain are told to wait until their six-month dental check-up.

An earlier from the Florence Project, published in October 2024, also highlighted the long-standing issue: The organization filed a complaint for an HIV-positive detainee at the ICE-run Florence Service Processing Center — located near the Florence Correctional Center — who said he was denied timely dental care and was in pain for months.

In October 2023, the detainee, "Juan," told detention-center staff about his tooth pain but had to wait three months to see a dentist, the report said. Despite ICE's detention standards claiming to offer a variety of dental treatments — including root canals — Juan was told his only option was tooth extraction.

"Given Juan’s HIV status and the negative health consequences that could arise from a dental infection, he was very upset that he had to wait months for dental care and that he was not offered any treatment besides extraction of the damaged tooth," the report said.

U.S. Rep. Yassamin Ansari, D-Arizona, has been speaking out about "inhumane" detention conditions in Arizona.

In response to a Tuesday query from the Star, Ansari wrote in an emailed statement: "I am outraged and devastated for the family who lost their loved one at the hands of ICE. No one should have to die under these horrific conditions. After four oversight visits to ICE facilities in Arizona, I have seen the inhumane conditions and medical neglect firsthand. I will continue to demand accountability."

Ellis said she feels "powerless" and "heartbroken" over Damas' death.

"My prayers are with Mr. Damas' family and the Haitian community during this difficult time," Ellis wrote in her Instagram post. "No family should ever endure such a loss, especially under circumstances that raise questions about access to timely and appropriate medical care.

"As a public servant and healthcare professional, I have engaged our Arizona congressional delegation to ensure that compassion, dignity and accountability remain at the center of how we treat every human being regardless of their immigration status," she wrote. "May Emmanuel’s memory inspire a renewed commitment to justice and humanity in all our institutions."