Detention Center detainee ends hunger strike

A Port Isabel Detention Center detainee stopped his hunger strike and no longer requires a federal court's intervention.

The federal court record shows detainee Kenson Lima has resumed eating and drinking fluids on a regular basis, which had led to his improvement in health.

Lima, 26, started a hunger strike at the center near Los Fresnos on June 23 while undergoing deportation proceedings. His court-appointed attorney, Jodilynn Goodwin, said Tuesday that she does not know why Lima started the hunger strike, noting that her scope had been limited.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman Nina Pruneda said the reason for Lima's hunger strike could not be released due to "privacy" concerns.

On July 1, U.S. Attorney Tim Johnson requested that U.S. District Judge Hilda G. Tagle authorize medical personnel to monitor Lima's vital signs and to administer fluids and nutrients by forced intravenous application, because Lima was getting increasingly weak. Johnson also noted that it was not possible to know how compromised Lima's physical health could be, or to know how soon medical intervention would be necessary.

Detention personnel said the hunger strike placed Lima in risk of dehydration, kidney damage, seizures, cardiac damage and even death.

Tagle issued court-ordered medical treatment for Lima on July 1 and scheduled a follow-up hearing for this past Monday.

By Monday, however, Lima had resumed eating, the court record shows, though the exact date is not noted.

Lima is a legal resident alien, but ICE is seeking his removal from the country because he allegedly committed a crime involving moral turpitude within five years of entering the U.S.

Removal proceedings began March 17.