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ICE detained Parady La, who died in Philadelphia federal custody after staff gave Narcan for his known drug withdrawal

On January 9, 2026, Parady La, a 46-year-old Cambodian American Upper Darby, Pennsylvania resident, died at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained him and held him at the Federal Bureau of Prisons' Federal Detention Center Philadelphia. ICE said La was being treated for drug withdrawal when he was found unresponsive in his cell and given several doses of Narcan before being hospitalized; his family and the ACLU of Pennsylvania have questioned why an opioid-overdose antidote, not standard withdrawal care, was administered. The ACLU filed a Freedom of Information Act request on February 5, 2026 seeking his detention, medical, and video records.

Part of: 2025–2026 ICE Detainee Death Surge

Jurisdiction
Federal
Location
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Abuses documented

Actors

On January 9, 2026, Parady La, a 46-year-old Cambodian American father from Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, died at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, three days after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained him on January 6 and held him at the Federal Bureau of Prisons' Federal Detention Center (FDC) Philadelphia. ICE said La was receiving treatment for severe drug withdrawal when he was found unresponsive in his cell on January 7; facility staff administered several doses of Narcan -- a medication that reverses opioid overdose, not a standard withdrawal treatment -- before he was transported to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with anoxic brain injury, shock, and multiple organ failure.

Victoria Peña-Parr, an attorney with the ACLU of Pennsylvania, said the organization is seeking the facility's policies and procedures "to understand why facility staff would give Narcan to a person who is going through withdrawal when that is not the medical standard." La's family disputes ICE's public characterization of him and says his death was preventable; his brother said it happened "less than 36 hours after he was taken by ICE." ICE, in a public statement, described La as a "career criminal illegal alien" and said it provides comprehensive medical care to detainees, without disclosing further detail on his treatment.

Updates

2026-02-05 — ACLU of Pennsylvania filed FOIA request for detention and medical records [1][2]

The ACLU of Pennsylvania filed a Freedom of Information Act request on behalf of La's family seeking his detention records, medical records, and video footage from FDC Philadelphia, with a response deadline of March 6, 2026. The family, joined by the ACLU, Philadelphia Community Bail Fund, VietLead, and Asian Americans United, held a press conference outside FDC Philadelphia demanding accountability and transparency.

2026-02-19 — Upper Darby Council passed resolution restricting ICE cooperation [7][8]

The Upper Darby Township Council voted unanimously to bar its police department from entering ICE's 287(g) program and from assisting ICE's civil immigration enforcement, citing La's death as the impetus. Council President Marion Minick said "their fear is real ... it is our own federal government creating this climate of fear," while Councilmember Kyle McIntyre described the measure as a first step toward further protections for immigrant residents.

2026-04-23 — ACLU of Pennsylvania sued ICE and the Bureau of Prisons over the unanswered FOIA request [5][6]

The ACLU of Pennsylvania filed a federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against ICE and the Federal Bureau of Prisons, alleging the agencies failed to timely search for and release records responsive to its February FOIA request within FOIA's statutory deadlines.

Why we recorded this

Government custody carries a duty to safely manage a medical need it already knows about. Parady La was known to be undergoing drug withdrawal when Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained him on January 6, 2026; he was found unresponsive in his cell roughly a day later, and staff gave him Narcan -- an opioid-overdose antidote, not standard withdrawal treatment -- before he died three days after his arrest. This archive records the death because a documented medical need, an unresponsive detainee within a day of intake, and a treatment mismatch the ACLU of Pennsylvania says is not the medical standard together describe a specific, avoidable failure of custodial care, not simply an unexplained death.

Sources

  1. Family of Parady La and Advocacy Groups Publicly Demand Accountability After Death in ICE Custody — ACLU of Pennsylvania primary accessed August 20, 2026
  2. ACLU of Pa., Parady La's family seek records after Upper Darby man dies in ICE custody: 'We need accountability' — WHYY News primary accessed August 20, 2026
  3. Family of Parady La, who died in ICE custody in Philadelphia, searches for answers — CBS News Philadelphia primary accessed August 20, 2026
  4. Family, ACLU demand transparency after Cambodian American man dies in ICE custody in Philadelphia — FOX 29 Philadelphia investigative accessed August 20, 2026
  5. American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania v. United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 2:26-cv-02690 (E.D. Pa.) — CourtListener (RECAP) primary accessed August 23, 2026
  6. ICE sued for records of Cambodian immigrant who died in custody — Pennsylvania Record (Legal Newsline) investigative accessed August 20, 2026
  7. Upper Darby Council passes resolution to restrict cooperation with ICE — The Philadelphia Inquirer primary accessed August 23, 2026
  8. Upper Darby Council limits local law enforcement collaboration with ICE — WHYY News primary accessed August 23, 2026

See also