Erika Mateo, a 24-year-old pregnant Guatemalan woman, was taken into custody and held under armed guard by the Department of Homeland Security and placed under expedited removal. After giving birth, she was transferred to ICE custody and denied access to her attorney, family and friends.

On April 28, Erika Mateo, a 24-year-old Guatemalan woman who was 9-months pregnant, was found wandering alone in the Arizona desert after crossing the Mexican border and seeking asylum in the US.

Mateo was immediately taken into custody and, after going into labor the following morning, was hospitalized at Tucson Medical Center (TMC) under armed guard by the Department of Homeland Security. She was immediately placed under expedited removal—a process to quickly remove her without the right to have her case brought before a judge.

After giving birth, Mateo was swiftly transferred into the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents who stood watch outside her hospital room. During her recovery she was denied access to her attorney, family and friends. Mateo stated that she refused to let go of her newborn baby, Emily, for fear that she would be taken away.

Mateo had traveled 2,000 miles to escape a violent and unsafe living situation in Guatemala, where she feared for her own life and that of her unborn baby. After crossing the US-Mexico border she was accidentally separated from her group and got lost in the Sonoran Desert. Mateo told USA Today that she feared she was going to die. “I walked and walked, but everything looked the same,” she said. “It was like walking in place. I would burst into tears pleading with God to help me find a way or for someone to find me.”…