What were the official causes of death for immigration detainees in 2025 and were autopsies performed?
Executive summary
In 2025 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement reported the deadliest year for detainees in two decades, with roughly 30–32 deaths; official causes listed by ICE and reported media included suicides, suspected organ failure (liver and/or kidney), seizures and other medical events, and at least one death later ruled a homicide by a local medical examiner [1] [2] [3] [4]. Autopsies were performed in some high-profile cases—most notably the El Paso County autopsy that concluded Geraldo Lunas Campos died of asphyxia and classified the death as a homicide—while other deaths were initially reported by ICE as “presumed” or “suspected” causes and in many instances families and lawmakers say full independent autopsy reports and related mortality reviews have not been made publicly available [5] [6] [7] [8].
1. Official toll and the causes ICE reported
ICE’s own public reporting and contemporaneous media tallies show 2025 as an outlier year for in-custody deaths, with agency lists and independent compilations placing the total around 30–32 deaths, the highest since 2004 [8] [2] [9]. The causes ICE released or described publicly were varied: multiple deaths were reported as suicides or “presumed suicide,” several were described as medical events such as seizures or liver/kidney failure, and others were reported as deaths following hospital transfers—language ICE often frames as preliminary or “suspected” causes [4] [1] [3].
2. Where autopsies were performed and what they found
Autopsies by local medical examiners produced clear, sometimes conflicting, findings in key cases: the El Paso County Medical Examiner’s autopsy determined Geraldo Lunas Campos died from asphyxia due to neck and torso compression and ruled the death a homicide, a conclusion at odds with ICE’s initial account that he had attempted suicide [5] [6]. Reporting indicates other bodies were sent to county examiners or military medical facilities—one autopsy was performed at the Army medical center at Fort Bliss in a separate case—while ICE’s public notices sometimes did not attach or detail full autopsy reports in the agency’s initial announcements [6] [3].
3. Gaps, disputes and oversight pressure
Families, advocates and some members of Congress pressed for independent autopsies, full mortality reviews and detainee death records, arguing ICE’s initial characterizations have sometimes been incomplete or contested; for example, relatives of some detainees have formally requested independent autopsies and lawmakers have demanded copies of autopsy and mortality review documents from DHS and ICE [1] [7]. Independent organizations and press outlets documenting the deaths note that ICE’s policies require reporting and reviews but that public transparency and timely release of full autopsy and review materials have often lagged, prompting FOIA litigation and congressional inquiries [8] [9] [7].
4. Patterns, uncertainties and why some causes remain provisional
Multiple sources show that ICE’s 2025 notices frequently used preliminary language—“presumed,” “suspected,” or “apparent”—because cause-of-death determinations can change after autopsy and review, and because different jurisdictions (county medical examiners, military facilities) may conduct their own examinations with varying public disclosure practices [8] [6]. Reporting from outlets such as The Guardian, Reuters, PBS and CBC documents specific autopsy results in several cases but also underscores that for many of the roughly 30–32 deaths the agency’s initial public statements remain the most readily available official assertions, leaving unresolved questions about how many full external autopsies were completed and publicly released [1] [2] [5] [3].
5. Conclusion: what is established and what is not
It is established that ICE reported the causes of death in 2025 across a range of categories—suicide, organ failure, seizures and other medical events—and that at least one high-profile death was later ruled a homicide by a county medical examiner [4] [1] [5]. What remains partially opaque is the completeness and public availability of autopsy and mortality-review documentation for the full set of 2025 detainee deaths: some autopsies were performed and reported by local or military examiners, but advocates, families and members of Congress have repeatedly demanded additional independent autopsies and the full release of mortality reviews and related documents to resolve contested accounts [6] [7] [8].