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Haitian asylum seeker dies from untreated tooth infection in ICE custody

Mar 2, 2026·Location: Florence, AZ

Country of origin: Haiti

Haitian asylum seeker dies from untreated tooth infection in ICE custody
Photo via Instagram

Emmanuel Damas, a 56-year-old Haitian who arrived in the U.S. under the Biden Administration's Humanitarian Parole program with a pending Temporary Protected Status application, died on March 2, 2026, from sepsis caused by an untreated dental infection. Damas was detained at Florence Correctional Center in Arizona and repeatedly reported tooth pain to facility staff starting in mid-February, requesting dental care multiple times but receiving only ibuprofen. After two weeks of complaints and developing difficulty breathing, he was taken to a Scottsdale hospital on February 19, but the infection had already progressed to septic shock and pneumonia. Damas died at the hospital. Representatives Ansari, Grijalva, and Stanton demanded a full investigation, noting he was the tenth person to die in ICE custody in the first two months of 2026.

Timeline

Mar 2, 2026—Damas died from sepsis and septic shock caused by untreated dental infection
Feb 19, 2026—Damas taken to Scottsdale hospital after reporting difficulty breathing; infection had progressed to sepsis
Feb 12, 2026—Emmanuel Damas reported tooth pain to Florence Correctional Center staff and began requesting dental care
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