A death at a federal immigrant jail was classified as a homicide by a Texas medical examiner on Tuesday, after having been previously characterized as a suicide attempt by the Department of Homeland Security.
The death of Geraldo Lunas Campos, a 55-year-old Cuban immigrant, marks the third death at Camp East Montana in West Texas. That comes amid reports that, at 32 deaths, 2025 was the deadliest year in two decades for those in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, according to The Guardian.
The Texas Tribune reported Wednesday that the El Paso medical examiner’s finding contradicted ICE’s inconsistent explanations for Campos’ death:
Geraldo Lunas Campos, who had been detained at Camp East Montana, died from ‘asphyxia due to neck and torso compression,’ according to the autopsy report, meaning that he couldn’t breathe because of pressure on his neck and chest. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in a Jan. 9 press release said Lunas Campos died after ‘experiencing medical distress.’ About a week later, ICE told the Associated Press that he instead died after attempting suicide and ICE staff attempted to save him.
The Washington Post reported last week that the Trump administration had moved to deport two people who allegedly witnessed Campos’ death, including one prisoner who claimed he saw guards choking Campos and repeatedly heard him cry out “no puedo respirar,” which in Spanish translates to “I can’t breathe.”
In response to the Post’s early reports about a possible determination of homicide, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said that Campos had “violently resisted the security staff and continued to attempt to take his life,” alleging that “during the ensuing struggle, Campos stopped breathing and lost consciousness.” DHS repeated this claim to the Post after the medical examiner’s finding was announced Wednesday.
A medical examiner’s ruling “does not imply intent to kill, but rather that the victim’s death was caused by another person,” according to one expert consulted by the Post.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., called last week for an independent investigation into Campos’ death, and she reiterated that call on Wednesday. Recent polling has shown a majority of Americans oppose ICE’s occasionally violent, sometimes deadly tactics, and think the organization is making Americans less safe. Some critics of the Trump administration’s racist crackdown have likened the facilities where immigrants have been locked up to concentration camps. Such claims are bolstered by allegations of widespread abuse and neglect, by the administration’s efforts to restrict lawmakers’ access to conduct lawful oversight, and now by the growing death toll among those detained there.
Ja’han Jones is an MS NOW opinion blogger. He previously wrote The ReidOut Blog. 
