This week we are sharing stories of families we met at Dilley while volunteering with RAICES. Today, Elena's story.
Last month, Elena was stopped while driving with her 18-year-old son Diego and her 11-year-old daughter Camila. Elena was shackled — legs, waist, and hands — as Camila sobbed and screamed for her mother.
They spent a night in a detention facility near San Antonio. Then Elena, still cuffed, and Camila were loaded into a van for a long drive to Dilley. Diego was taken to a separate facility, away from his mother and little sister.
Family separation now, unlike in 2018, happens at traffic stops, at routine check-ins, at courthouses. By separating Diego's case from his mother's, the government cleared the path to deport him in under two weeks. Sometimes a parent is simply arrested, leaving a child at home alone. Elena's 14-year-old son is living that reality right now. The mechanism is quieter. The harm is not.
In early April, Diego had his own hearing and was ordered removed. Elena has not been able to speak with Diego directly. She learned he was being deported the way she finds out everything — Diego called his older brother, and his older brother told her.
Elena fled abuse so severe it left her unable to walk unassisted for months. She lives with chronic pain managed through physical therapy, medication, and regular doctor visits. None of that is available in Dilley.
Elena has diabetes. In her family, managing it is not optional — it is a matter of life and death. She has already lost a family member to uncontrolled diabetes. Before detention, her doctor visited her monthly, checked in regularly, and even brought her fresh vegetables because diet is critical to managing her condition. At Dilley, even the diabetes-specific diet is too greasy. Elena imagines her doctor has been calling. She doesn't know if anyone knows where she is.
Medical neglect at Dilley is documented and systemic. Since the facility reopened in April 2025, families have filed more than 1,000 complaints. A new joint report by Human Rights First and RAICES found that detention regularly worsens physical and mental health. ICE has not paid outside medical providers since October 2025 — a gap that internal government documents called an "absolute emergency."
When Elena arrived at Dilley, she was denied medications, including an antidepressant and sleep medication, for 12 days. Withdrawal symptoms layered on top of her chronic pain, the fear of detention, and the trauma of being shackled in front of her daughter.
Elena is not a threat. She is a mother fleeing abuse, managing a condition that has already claimed a family member, with a son ordered removed, a 14-year-old at home alone, and a daughter who has not stopped being scared since the day they were stopped.
Tomorrow, we'll share the story of a 13-year-old who has lived in the U.S. since he was one. He will have to stand before an immigration judge and present his asylum case alone.
Click on the title to see this post on LinkedIn.