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florida
20-Year-Old Dies in ICE Detention Center Known for Abuse
Royer Perez-Jimenez had been stopped by law enforcement agents for a traffic violation in January.
Mar 19, 2026
A 20-year-old who was arrested in January after being stopped for a traffic violation in Florida is now believed to be the youngest person to have died in immigration detention under the second Trump administration, after US Immigration and Customs Enforcement notified Congress of the young man's death this week.
Royer Perez-Jimenez was found unresponsive by a detention officer at Glades County Detention Center in Moore Haven, Florida at around 2:30 am Eastern on Monday. The center operates as an immigration detention facility under a contract with ICE.
Local emergency workers arrived and attempted lifesaving interventions, according to ICE's statement, but Perez-Jimenez was pronounced dead soon after.
The agency said Perez-Jimenez "died of a presumed suicide," but did not detail how that was determined and noted that the cause of death is still under investigation.
According to a tracker by The American Prospect, which has been monitoring deaths in ICE detention as well as deaths and injuries of people who have encountered federal immigration agents conducting enforcement operations, Perez-Jimenez is at least the 49th person who has died in detention since President Donald Trump took office for his second term in January 2025.
Perez-Jimenez was stopped on January 22 by the Edgewater Police Department for allegedly "crossing traffic lanes without using a crosswalk" while riding a scooter, according to the Miami New Times. He allegedly refused to stop and gave the officers "multiple fake names," which are both misdemeanors, according to an arrest report viewed by the New Times, but ICE's initial statement alleged that Perez-Jimenez had been charged with "felony fraud for impersonation."
ICE also said Perez-Jimenez was 19 years old and stated that the Volusia County Sheriff's Office arrested him. The sheriff's office provided jail booking information that showed Perez-Jimenez was listed as 20 years old.
The ICE report stated that Perez-Jimenez eventually told the officers that he had "overstayed his visa and is currently in the United States illegally" after coming into the country from his native Mexico.
ICE said Perez-Jimenez initially entered the US in 2022 and was granted a "voluntary return" to Mexico after he encountered US Border Patrol agents. He then reentered the US.
While alleging Perez-Jimenez had died of a presumed suicide, ICE acknowledged that he had been evaluated by medical staff during his intake, did not report any behavioral health concerns, and answered "no" to all suicide screening questions.
A spokesperson for the agency did not respond to a question from News Times regarding whether Perez-Jimenez was on suicide watch.
In 2022, 17 members of Congress called for the closure of Glades County Detention Center over escalating reports of abuse. They said immigrants there were subjected to "racist abuse, often resulting in verbal abuse and violence; sexual abuse, including sexual voyeurism by guards who have watched women shower; life-endangering Covid-19 and medical neglect, including a near-fatal carbon monoxide leak last November; and regular exposure to highly dangerous levels of a toxic disinfectant chemical spray linked to severe medical harms and long-term damage to reproductive health.”
Black immigrants in particular also faced death threats, the use of pepper spray, solitary confinement, and "extreme forms of physical violence like using the restraint chair," according to the lawmakers.
ICE ended its deal with the center in 2022, only for Trump to reopen the facility for immigration detention in 2025.
Austin Kocher, a professor at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, warned that despite the accelerating rate of deaths in ICE detention, "Congress has not launched a single investigation."
"This is not complicated or controversial. I am simply asking Congress to take seriously the death of people in ICE’s care and custody," wrote Kocher. "ICE is an agency for which Congress is obligated to provide accountability and oversight, particularly when that agency is unable or unwilling to police itself—such as now."
Kocher urged Americans to call on US Rep. Scott Franklin (R-Fla.), who represents the district where the facility is located, to demand an investigation.
"Light up his inboxes, phone lines, and social media until he does his job and looks into the conditions at this facility," said Kocher. "If you’ve been waiting for the time to take direction action, wait no longer: Act now. Demand accountability. Do not stop until you get real answers."
The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline—which offers 24/7, free, and confidential support—can be reached by calling or texting 988, or through chat at 988lifeline.org.
This piece has been updated with information provided by the Volusia County Sheriff's Department regarding Perez-Jimenez's age and the agency that arrested him.
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No Ballot Measures Qualified in Florida This Year; That Was Not an Accident
If and when other states replicate Florida’s hardball tactics against ballot measures, it would represent the greatest threat to direct democracy in years.
Mar 10, 2026
In February, the Florida Department of State determined that no citizen-initiated measures qualified for the Florida 2026 general election ballot. This was not an accident. This outcome is the culmination of a multi-year, multi-pronged attack on the ballot measure process in Florida, with the most draconian blow coming last May.
On May 2, 2025, the Florida legislature passed House Bill 1205, a law that restricts, criminalizes, and penalizes ballot initiative efforts in Florida. HB 1205 is a direct assault on Florida’s citizen-led constitutional amendment process—imposing vague, burdensome, and punitive restrictions that threaten to chill core political speech and discourage civic participation. Although there are several insidious provisions in this law—severe petition-related fines and penalties, restrictive circulation periods, and burdensome petition circulation training obligations, including for volunteers—one of the most damaging provisions only revealed its true nature weeks after the law went into effect.
Unique to the Florida ballot measure process, statewide initiative proponents are obligated to pay a verification fee for each petition they submit. Prior to HB 1205, the cost averaged about 87 cents per petition. On its face, this obligation was already unconstitutional. However, HB 1205 went even further, redefining the “actual cost” of signature verification and authorizing county supervisors to calculate the new per-petition cost, and begin collecting it from statewide ballot initiatives.
Starting on June 30, 2025, the county supervisors began posting their increased signature verification rates. Many newly posted fees are dramatically higher. For example, Lee County raised fees from $0.95 to $4.40 per petition, a 363% increase, while Gilchrist County raised fees from $0.10 to $2.77 per petition, a 2,670% increase. On average, Florida’s three largest counties increased fees to more than $3.77 per signature. As a result, it will now cost sponsors millions of dollars to verify enough petitions to qualify for the ballot. By comparison, no other state even comes close—the largest filing fee we are aware of is Montana’s fee of $3,700, which a court promptly struck down as unconstitutional under state law.
If the regressive policies of HB 1205 are left unchecked, other states will immediately adopt the same types of policies.
There is no question that Florida has been a breeding ground for bad legislation in recent years. Just to name a few—in 2005, Florida passed the first “stand your ground” law. Florida was one of the first states to ban “critical race theory” from its classrooms and was the first state to ban the AP African American studies course. Attacks on the ballot measure process have escalated in recent years, and there is no question that state legislatures look to one another for novel ideas to make the ballot measure process more restrictive. Once a restrictive policy is seen as permissible in one state, other states move quickly to adopt it for themselves. For instance, several states have tried to increase their ballot measure passage thresholds after Florida increased its threshold to 60%. Likewise, geographic circulation requirements, circulator registration and reporting obligations, and circulator payment restrictions have spread like wildfire across Republican-controlled states. Without a doubt, if the regressive policies of HB 1205 are left unchecked, other states will immediately adopt the same types of policies.
And yet, there is still hope. After HB 1205 passed last year, Florida Decides Healthcare, the Medicaid expansion initiative campaign, immediately filed a lawsuit in federal court arguing that HB 1205 is a direct assault on Florida’s citizen-led ballot measure process. That case went to trial on February 9, where the State attempted to defend its restrictions. If HB 1205 is allowed to stand, it will be prohibitively expensive for any initiative to get on the ballot in Florida. If and when other states replicate Florida’s hardball tactics against ballot measures, it would represent the greatest threat to direct democracy in years. Democracy advocates around the country should watch this trial closely, and we should all applaud Florida Decides Healthcare for standing up for their direct democracy rights.
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Cuba Says Men on Florida Boat 'Intended to Carry Out an Infiltration for Terrorist Purposes'
The Cuban Interior Ministry said it detained seven people involved in the plot, including one who "had allegedly been sent from the United States to facilitate the landing and reception of the armed group."
Feb 26, 2026
The Cuban government said Wednesday that the men on a Florida-registered boat who opened fire on Cuban soldiers in the island's territorial waters were bent on carrying out "an infiltration for terrorist purposes."
In a statement following news that Cuban forces had killed four people on the boat, the besieged Caribbean nation's Interior Ministry said the vessel was carrying 10 men, all "Cuban nationals residing in the United States."
The ministry said it seized assault rifles, explosives, body armor, and other items from the boat and identified seven of its passengers, six of whom were detained. Four men on the boat—which, according to reports, was last purchased in 2022—were killed in the gunfight with Cuban soldiers, who had reportedly "approached the vessel for identification."
Cuban authorities also said another individual, Duniel Hernández Santos, was arrested "within national territory." The Interior Ministry said Santos "had allegedly been sent from the United States to facilitate the landing and reception of the armed group and has confessed to his role."
"The investigation remains ongoing until all facts have been fully established," the ministry said.
Participants in Foiled Armed Infiltration in Villa Clara Identified
As part of the ongoing investigation into the armed attack against a patrol vessel of the Border Guard Troops of the Ministry of the Interior, in the northeastern area of the El Pino channel, at Cayo Falcones,… pic.twitter.com/s9IFmUkqvk
— Cuban Embassy in US (@EmbaCubaUS) February 26, 2026
The deadly incident came as Cuba continued to reel from the Trump administration's recent intensification of decades-long economic warfare against the island. The administration is "actively seeking regime change in Cuba," according to Wall Street Journal reporting from last month.
Wednesday's incident called to the minds of observers past efforts, backed by the US, to topple the Cuban government, from the failed Bay of Pigs invasion to Operation Mongoose.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, denied that any American government personnel were involved in the incident and said it was under investigation.
"We're going to find out exactly what happened here, and then we'll respond accordingly," said Rubio, a longtime supporter of regime change in Cuba. "It is highly unusual to see shootouts in open sea like that. It's not something that happens every day. It's something, frankly, that hasn't happened with Cuba in a very long time."
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