DHS Opens Up Investigation Into Claims ICE Forced Hysterectomies on Detained Migrant Women
An internal watchdog enlisted after a nurse at Georgia’s Irwin County Detention Center said several women complained to her that they were made to undergo the procedure.

Reuters/Reade Levinson
Earlier this week, a whistleblower nurse went public with the shocking allegation that multiple migrant women at a Georgia detention center had been forced to undergo unnecessary hysterectomies by a doctor she chillingly referred to as the “uterus collector.” Now, the Department of Homeland Security’s internal watchdog has confirmed that it will investigate the claims. According to The Wall Street Journal, the DHS confirmed the probe following intense pressure from Congress and immigrant advocates. The complaint, filed by Dawn Wooten, who works as a nurse at the Irwin County Detention Center, said in her whistleblower complaint: “I’ve had several inmates tell me that they’ve been to see the doctor and they’ve had hysterectomies and they don’t know why they went or why they’re going.” More than 170 members of Congress signed a letter asking DHS Inspector General Joseph Cuffari to launch the probe.
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