A pregnant Venezuelan woman who was detained after a routine check-in at the Dallas ICE Field Office is asking to be released over concerns for her health.
Darisbell Paola Quintero Morillo has been detained at the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado for the last three weeks. She didn’t know she was pregnant until she underwent a medical evaluation there.
“I haven't seen a doctor since the exam,” she told KERA in Spanish during a phone interview. “They just did some bloodwork, and I didn't hear anything else from them.”
This is Quintero’s first pregnancy. She and her husband, Gilbert Vicent, entered the U.S. in April 2021, fleeing political persecution in Venezuela. They both have pending asylum cases.
Quintero’s attorney Oscar Mendoza called her detainment “troubling.” He said despite being compliant with immigration requirements, Quintero was detained while attending an ICE check-in appointment.
"She's been doing everything correctly, attending her hearings, applying for asylum, and she's been reporting to ICE as she's supposed to,” Mendoza told KERA. "And they detained her anyway, regardless of that, regardless that she's been fulfilling her duties to report.”
Quintero said she is worried about her pregnancy due to the poor quality of food and lack of nutrition. She’s lost weight and said she isn’t sleeping well.
“The conditions here are not great, but the worst part is the food,” Quintero said. "I’ve said that this food is not sufficient for any person, and certainly not for me, who is pregnant.... They don’t even add fruit to the plate."
She supplements her diet with tuna fish she buys from the commissary for extra protein.
Quintero said she’s not the only pregnant woman in Prairieland, and not everyone has family members to add money to their commissary. She said it’s caused tension and frustration inside the facility.
“They are hungry because we eat dinner at 4 p.m. and then we don’t eat again until early in the morning,” she said. “When we go to eat, they rush us. It's only like five minutes. And we don't eat well because we rush.
“It's crazy. They treat us like animals,” Quintero said.
She said she’s yet to see a doctor but is given supplements inside the facility.
KERA has reached out to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement with questions regarding Quintero’s detainment and medical care and is waiting for a response.
ICE has previously said for many detainees “this is the best healthcare they receive in their entire lives.”
Mendoza, Quintero’s attorney, said ICE has the power to release her through “parole authority,” but attorneys for the government have declined to release her.
“Even though there's a rule in the books that says that pregnant people should be given special consideration,” Mendoza said.
He said Quintero does not have a criminal record and isn’t a flight risk. “They're doing a great injustice,” he said.
Mendoza filed a petition in federal court as well as an emergency motion to get a quicker decision, but the judge denied the motion. He said the government has until June to respond to the petition.
“The case raises serious concerns regarding the treatment of pregnant detainees, the disregard of established parole guidance, and the broader due process implications of prolonged detention while habeas relief is pending,” Mendoza said.
For Vicent, the biggest concern is the wellbeing of his pregnant wife.
“My wife doesn't rest well, and besides that, they don’t respond on time, which is why a lot of women die,” Vicent told KERA. “That’s my fear, that my child will die inside there. It’s something that she’s going through and they see that, but they don’t want to do anything there.”
He said they came to the U.S. because it was the “land of opportunities.” He owns various barber shops in North Texas and he and his wife are homeowners. He’s worried about their future here.
“If my wife leaves, I will leave too,” he said.
Priscilla Rice is KERA’s communities reporter. Got a tip? Email her at price@kera.org.
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