Official: ICE transfers 47 immigrants after protest at Taylor detention center

ROUND ROCK U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has transferred 47 immigrant women who were part of a “sit-down” protest Monday inside a detention facility in Taylor, an ICE official said.

The women were transferred to the Laredo Detention Center, said Richard Rocha, an ICE spokesman, in an email Thursday.

The women were part of a group of 80 female detainees protesting at the T. Don Hutto Residential Center in Taylor, Rocha said.

“The detainees told facility staff they would continue their protest until they were released from custody; however, those actions compromised security protocols at the facility and blocked access to services including visitation, court and the dining area,” Rocha said.

Staff told the women who did not comply with requests to stop the protest that they might be transferred, he said.