Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones announced Monday that Virginia has joined a coalition of 22 states and the District of Columbia urging the Trump administration to reverse a federal policy ending investigations and public reporting of deaths occurring shortly after immigrants are released from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody. New York Attorney General Letitia James led the multistate effort, which sent a letter on July 7, 2026, to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Acting ICE Director David Venturella. The policy change rescinds a 2021 Biden administration policy that mandated ICE notify Congress and investigate when detainees died within 30 days of being released from custody.

"This new policy is a blatant attempt to hide dangerous conditions inside ICE detention centers from the public," James said. She added, "ICE must ensure that every person in its custody receives basic medical care, safe conditions, and humane treatment." Jones said, "With the disturbing rise in reports of abuse and death in ICE detention facilities in recent months, transparency is more important now than ever." He further stated, "This change in policy is an abhorrent attempt by ICE and the DHS to sidestep responsibility for their dangerous actions, and we won't allow it." Virginia hosts multiple ICE detention centers, including the Caroline Detention Facility in Bowling Green and the Farmville Detention Center.

Under the prior policy, ICE officials could request reviews and publicly release findings when former detainees died shortly after release. A DHS official said, "Under this updated policy, when an individual is no longer in ICE custody then ICE will no longer be responsible for monitoring or reviewing deaths that may occur." ICE continues to publish reports on deaths of detainees while in custody. The coalition's letter cited the case of Ismael Ayala-Uribe, a former Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival recipient who died after being transferred from the Adelanto ICE Processing Center in California to a hospital. Ayala-Uribe died from septic shock, which was linked to an untreated abscess and other complications. A Human Rights Watch report indicated 52 deaths occurred while individuals were in ICE custody between Jan. 20, 2025, and June 25, 2026. An analysis by the health policy organization KFF identified 46 deaths in or connected to ICE detention as of March 18, 2026.

In addition to New York and Virginia, the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia also signed the letter.