At least three dozen elected officials in the Arizona Legislature and city of Phoenix are demanding the immediate humanitarian release of a queer woman in ICE custody who is not being given adequate medical care, according to multiple sources. 

Arbella “Yari” Rodríguez Márquez is a legal resident whose health has reached a critical state after more than 14 months in ICE custody. In a formal letter dated April 27, 2026, the Arizona Legislative Democrats’ LGBTQIA+ Caucus, joined by dozens of other lawmakers, urged federal authorities to approve humanitarian parole for Márquez, who is currently held at the Eloy Detention Center.

The lawmakers warned that Márquez’s continued detention, despite documented evidence of her worsening medical conditions and a history of leukemia, is effectively a "death sentence". 

Signed by leaders such as Rep. Brian Garcia and Sen. Priya Sundareshan, the letter claims that the facility is not equipped to provide life-saving care for her deteriorating state.

This legislative push follows a similar demand from Phoenix City Councilwoman Anna Hernandez, who recently called on the Department of Homeland Security to release Márquez so she can receive emergency treatment. U.S. Representative Yassamin Ansari, who invited Márquez’s partner, Sonia Almaraz, to the State of the Union earlier this year, has also been a vocal advocate, describing the medical neglect at Eloy as "absolutely appalling”.

Márquez, a lesbian woman deeply embedded in Phoenix’s LGBTQ+ arts and music scene, was taken into custody on February 10, 2025, while returning through the Nogales border. Despite having no criminal history and maintaining legal residency for over two decades, she was stripped of her residency and placed in removal proceedings.

Since her detainment, witnesses describe a harrowing account of Márquez's medical decline while inside: Márquez has lived with chronic lymphocytic leukemia since 2013, but since her detention, her condition has spiraled. She has reportedly lost over 70 pounds, suffers from hematemesis (vomiting blood daily), and now requires a walker to move. 

Beyond leukemia, she has been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and lymphedema while in custody, yet advocates claim she has been denied basic treatment, with officials reportedly offering only Tylenol for her pain.

ICE officials have not responded to multiple requests from LOOKOUT regarding Márquez’s health inside. 

The public campaign, led by the LGBTQ+ migrant rights group Trans Queer Pueblo, has gained significant momentum, with an online petition garnering over 2,700 signatures. The pressure campaign has not been without controversy; fellow organizer Karla Saenz was recently detained in what advocates called a "retaliatory" arrest for her work on Márquez’s behalf, though a federal judge ordered Saenz’s release last month after LOOKOUT reported on her detention. 

Márquez’s partner and community continue to plead for her life: ”We just want her out," Almaraz said recently, adding that every additional day in Eloy is a day of "cruelty, negligence, and violence.”