Ohio’s first Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainee, Oscar Lopez Acosta, died earlier this week from COVID-19 after being detained at the Morrow County Correctional Facility. SPPO Associate Professor, Dr. Anna Babel, is an immigration activist and spoke weekly with Mr. Acosta from the jail. 

To learn more about Mr. Acosta's story and the realities that ICE detainees are facing during the global pandemic, please visit the following links:

Columbus Free Press: "Ohio's First ICE Detainee Dies From COVID-19"

Mother Jones: "A Honduran Man Has Died of COVID-19 After Leaving an ICE Jail Plagued by the Virus"

Many thanks to Dr. Anna Babel, who took the time to advocate for Mr. Acosta and all ICE detainees, in both articles. The department extends its condolences to Mr. Acosta's family.