On Thursday, more than 20 members of the LGTBQ+ activist group Trans Queer Pueblo held a press conference at its downtown Phoenix headquarters to call for the release of 39-year-old Arbella Rodríguez Márquez, who has been in ICE custody since Feb. 10. Márquez is a Mexican citizen, according to an ICE detainee database, but her partner, Sonia Almaraz, says she has a green card and the legal right to be in the country.
In a statement to Phoenix New Times, ICE spokesperson Fernando X. Burgos Ortiz said Márquez is being held for “alleged violations of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which states that it is unlawful for any person to bring to the United States any alien who does not have a valid passport and an unexpired visa.” Customs and Border Protection spokesperson John Mennell told New Times that Márquez is accused of human smuggling.
However, Almaraz said the human smuggling allegation is overblown and a misunderstanding.
Almaraz said Márquez drove paperwork to and from Mexico for an Arizona car dealership. She and Almaraz were in Nogales, Mexico, during one such trip, Almaraz said, when her bosses called to ask her to pick up a coworker in Nogales and drop him in Tucson. Almaraz said the coworker, whom she identified only as “Oscar,” showed Márquez an Arizona ID.
After crossing the border into the United States, they were stopped by Border Patrol. Almaraz said Oscar turned out not to be a citizen and was using someone else’s ID. Márquez had believed the man was a citizen, Almaraz said.
“She was actually a victim of a person who was using someone else’s information,” Almaraz said. “She didn’t know anything.”
The two were separated. Almaraz, who is a U.S. citizen, said she was held in ICE custody for four hours before being released, which she called “the worst thing that could happen to an American citizen.” After her release, Almaraz said, she was unable to locate Márquez, who goes by Yari, for two days.
The next time they saw each other was in an Eloy Detention Center visitation room. The detention center, which is operated by the private prison company CoreCivic, is located roughly 60 miles away from Phoenix.
“I visit her every weekend, and each time she tells me ‘I’m not giving up,” Almaraz said. “Yari is so much more than the way that she’s treated by this government.”
Worsening health
Almaraz was hesitant to talk about the circumstances of her partner’s arrest, she said, because she wanted to focus on Márquez’s perilous health situation. Almaraz and Trans Queer Pueblo say ICE and CoreCivic are neglecting her medical needs while she is in their custody.Not long after the couple started dating, Márquez was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, which can cause fatigue, fever, infections and easy bruising and bleeding. Márquez has received on-and-off treatment for the disease for the last 12 years. When she was detained, Amaraz said, her health was strong. But since she’s been in ICE detention, her treatment has been slim to none and her health has deteriorated.
During their weekly visits every Sunday, Almaraz is allowed to give Márquez a kiss and a single hug before they have an hour to sit across from each other, without again touching. Over time, Almaraz has watched her partner’s health worsen. Márquez has lost 55 pounds since she’s been in Eloy, said Almaraz, who fears Márquez will die there before her release can be secured.
“This actually completely destroys your life,” Almaraz said.
CoreCivic referred New Times to a statement given for a previous story about health services in its facilities, which it said are provided by ICE. “CoreCivic provides high quality health care to every individual in our care,” wrote CoreCivic spokesperson Brian Todd. Burgos Ortiz said, "ICE is not permitted to speak about a detainee's medical record" because of privacy laws, but that the agency "prioritizes the health, safety, and well-being of all detainees in its care."
Notably, Eloy Detention Center is notoriously one of the deadliest ICE facilities in the country, according to a 2019 report by Puente and the Advancement Project. So far this year, 11 detainees have died in ICE custody, two of whom were held at Eloy Detention Center. Trans Queer Pueblo said LGBTQ+ people such as Márquez suffer “especially harsh conditions” at Eloy Detention Center.
Arizona Democratic Rep. Yassamin Ansari visited the facility in late May and heard dozens of what she called “extremely alarming” stories about the conditions there. Detainees told Ansari they had been forced to walk around in the Eloy heat without food or shade for two hours while guards yelled degrading remarks at them. ICE denied the veracity of that allegation at the time.
Almaraz said Márquez’s lawyer has petitioned for parole so Márquez could receive adequate medical treatment, but that her detention officer denied that request on June 24. Almaraz has also been “fighting” to prevent the U.S. government from “completely taking” her green card away from her.
Trans Queer Pueblo also called on Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego to visit Márquez in detention. Spokesperson Sonix Flores told New Times the group hasn’t reached out to Ansari’s office but plans to.
