US immigration authorities released the last of nine detained women who were taken to see a rural Georgia gynecologist accused of performing hysterectomies and other unnecessary medical procedures, a lawyer for the women said Friday.
Dozens of women have accused Dr. Mahendra Amin of performing procedures without their consent that were medically unnecessary and jeopardized their ability to have children, accusations that generated great outrage. Those affected were at the privately run Irwin County Detention Center in Ocilla, Georgia.
Through his lawyer, Amin has denied any wrongdoing. There is an open federal criminal investigation.
During the term of former President Donald Trump, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE) deported at least six women last year who denounced Amin’s practices, and was within hours of doing the same. with at least three more before the intervention of their lawyers.
“These women have supported each other, organized and continued to fight to bring the truth to light, despite all the efforts of the Trump administration to silence them,” said Elora Mukherjee, professor at Columbia Law School. and one of the lawyers who work with those affected.
Deportations of any potential witnesses are suspended by court order, even after ICE tried to retract in court the agreement reached earlier with the Department of Justice.
In a class action lawsuit filed in December, 41 women filed statements about what they report as Amin’s misconduct. The complaint is pending. Many of those affected have been deported or released by the immigration authorities since the accusations appeared in September.
ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The agency previously denied deporting women to prevent them from testifying and promised it would cooperate with all investigations. In addition, he said that he prioritizes giving the necessary medical attention to all detainees.
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