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Colombian asylum-seeking mother says kidney infection went untreated for months at Otay Mesa

Sep 13, 2026·Location: San Diego, CA

Country of origin: Colombia

Colombian asylum-seeking mother says kidney infection went untreated for months at Otay Mesa
Photo via daylightsandiego.org

A Colombian mother seeking asylum after fleeing domestic violence says she has suffered months of delayed and inadequate medical care for a serious kidney and urinary tract infection while detained at Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego. She crossed the border in the San Diego-Tijuana area in September 2025 and has been held since October while her asylum case, which the government sought to redirect to Honduras, remains on appeal. Medical records show repeated visits for pain, bleeding, and blood in her urine that went undertreated for months, including delayed antibiotics, a delayed ultrasound and CT scan, and two emergency room visits before she was hospitalized and diagnosed with pyelonephritis. She said a guard mistreated her, including a 30-day suspension of her phone privileges that cut off contact with her two children.

Timeline

Sep 13, 2026—Reports detailed months of delayed medical care for a kidney infection, hospitalization for IV antibiotics, and a guard's suspension of her phone privileges
Oct 1, 2025—Taken into ICE custody at Otay Mesa Detention Center; government sought to redirect her asylum case to Honduras
Sep 1, 2025—Crossed the border in the San Diego-Tijuana area seeking asylum after fleeing domestic violence in Colombia
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