7/11/20
By Tom Cartwright
DEATH FLIGHTS - WEEK OF 6 July – please share for transparency
(photo: Save the Children protest, Columbus OH, today. Translation " I am not an animal.")
EARLY NEXT WEEK WE WILL PUBLISH THE JUNE, AND JUNE YEAR-TO-DATE, DEATH FLIGHT SUMMARIES – BOTH DEPORTATIONS AND DOMESTIC. WATCH THIS SPACE TO SEE THE REAL FACTS ABOUT HOW ICE AIR CONTINUES TO SEED, SPREAD, AND EXPORT COVID WITH ABANDON DURING THE PANDEMIC.
91 Flights. Up 10 from the 81 last week and a bit above the last 8-week average of 87. Deportations of 18 however, were 20% above the last 8-week average of 15.
WEEKLY SUMMARY
- 91 Flights, 10 more than last week, attributable primarily to deportation related flights including returns and deportation direct connections. Shuffle flights continue to be relatively consistent week to week in a very predictable range of 40-45, seemingly regardless of the variation in deportation flights.
18 Deportations – up 3 from last week and to 8 different. If patterns hold, I’m expecting slightly fewer deportations next week and to fewer different countries.
- Mexico (6), same for the last 4 weeks after stepping up from 4 weeks at 4 flights per week. The majority of crossings now are of single Mexicans.
- Honduras (4), same as last week.
- Guatemala (2), interestingly down 1 from last week after the resumptions of regular flights was announced. After the announcement Wed. last week there were flights the next 3 straight days. This week only Tues. and Fri. We will watch. Flights do have around 70 deportees now, up from the 50 prior to the last suspension.
- El Salvador (2), same as last week, and same as 4 of the last 5 weeks.
- Nicaragua, Brazil, Dominican, and Ecuador each accepted 1 flight. Nicaragua, Dominican and Ecuador seem to be on a every other week schedule. Brazil around every third week.
- 16 Deportation US Connections, up 6 from last week.
- 17 Deportation Returns, up 4 from last week
- 40 Shuffle flights in the US, down 3 from as last week.
Ø Noteworthy this week:
Ø The Detainee population dropped 226 this week to 22,579, the smallest weekly decline in at least the beginning of April. The population has dropped over 15,000 from early April. As we have written before decreases are not the result of releases but rather deportations and the border stranglehold from Title 42 expulsions (CDC order) where asylum seekers are just turned around in hours at the border with no due process – a total shut down of the legal asylum process.
- Almost 70,000 asylum seekers have been turned back under this illegal order since mid- March. 27,000 alone in June out of 30,400 encounters and up from 20,000 in May.
- although CBP discloses the overall numbers they DO NOT release how many of these were unaccompanied children. A few weeks past they did respond to a Congressional inquiry with 2,000 children. Yesterday I contacted CBP media relations to ask what the number is now based on the June 70,000. CBP’s response was:
“ If you would like a breakdown within title 42 of a particular demographic that is unavailable on our website you will need to file a FOIA request.”
Really? What is there to hide? Where are the children sent back to Mexico- alone?
Ø 3,090 detainees have tested positive for COVID, up 348, or 13%, this week. 11,828 have been tested, up 1,315 this week, so 26% positive rate. This week’s 1,315 tests followed weeks of 1,655 and 1,494.
-There are 883 detainees in isolation of under monitoring, up 130 from last week.
Ø We highly recommend watching the video report released this week by the New York Times and the Marshall Project investigating ICE and ICE Air in midst of the pandemic. As we have been reporting here it is unconscionable. We were proud to have had discussions with the authors and to contribute photos and videos to their effort. It is extremely well done.
Note: ICE Air does not disclose their flights. Flight listing gleaned from public flight information, knowledge of detention center locations, air charter services and historic patterns. In rare cases, there may be a flight we miss, or include in error.