Autopsy results showed that the death of five-year-old inside a grim Chicago migrant shelter was caused by sepsis and a bacterial infection.
Jean Carlos Martinez was just five when he passed away on December 17 after taking shelter at the Pilsen shelter south of downtown.
His cause of death was found to be sepsis due to streptococcus pyogenes group A infection, which can cause strep throat and other life-threatening illnesses, the autopsy released by the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office showed.
Contributing factors in his death were listed as COVID-19, adenovirus and rhinovirus, the autopsy showed.
Jean was sick with a fever and a pain in his left leg for two or three days before he died.
Jean Carlos Martinez was just five when he passed away on December 17 after taking shelter at the Pilsen shelter south of downtown
Autopsy results showed that the death of five-year-old inside a grim Chicago migrant shelter was caused by sepsis and a bacterial infection
Jean’s tragic death in December came alongside four other hospitalizations of children from inside the same shelter.
The many instances of sicknesses prompted questions to be asked about the conditions of the shelter.
Video footage, exclusively obtained by DailyMail.com, shows 2,300 migrants huddled together in freezing temperatures underneath a leaking roof in the shelter.
Volunteers told DailyMail.com they feared weeks ago that the conditions could lead to deaths among the sick children.
One video showed a young boy with what appeared to be a bandage on his head lying on a thin fold-out bed, distracting himself with a tablet.
Another shows a different child coughing and crying as they had their temperature taken and were examined by volunteers.
A third video showed water leaking from the roof and pooling on one of the beds.
‘When the water is thrown up here… since all that the wood is rotting from the water that fell here – look, it has water,’ a man said in Spanish as he filmed.
The converted warehouse appeared to be doing a poor job at keeping out the Chicago winter chill in the freezing December weather.
A photo of a small girl bundled up in a pink puffer jacket and matching pants and beanie showed the warehouse was not keeping out the winter chill
A photo showed a small girl bundled up in a pink puffer jacket and matching pants and beanie.
Volunteers on October 15 sent an email detailing their concerns about conditions in the shelter to two City of Chicago officials.
‘Dozens of sick people, including children, denied analgesics and other palliative measures,’ wrote Annie Gomberg, with the city’s Police Station Response Team.
‘If a resident needs medical help, they are on their own with no advice other than to call 911, and told that it will “cost them a lot of money” to use an ambulance and go to a hospital as a deterrent.
‘I thought we were paying for doctors and nurses?’
Gomberg described how drinking water was rationed in 4 to 6oz cups and there was insufficient food and bathrooms for the 2,300 migrants living there.
She warned children were not given any vaccinations, which combined with everyone living in close quarters, could be deadly.
‘I predict a disease outbreak like measles within the next six months without further intervention,’ she wrote.
‘They don’t provide clothes or sufficient blankets and bedding, all are supplied by private citizens committed to alleviating suffering.’
There was also no access to a laundry, at least one the broke migrants could afford, so everyone was wearing dirty clothes.
Migrants have previously described outbreaks of chickenpox, the flu, and upper respiratory infections inside the shelter.
The shelter is run by Favorite Healthcare Staffing, a Kansas-based contractor, which the city paid $100 million to operate since September 2022
Video shot by a passerby showed rubbish piled up outside the shelter. The converted factory was the subject of numerous complaints about unsanitary conditions
They said some children got eye infections from fiber-like debris falling from the ceiling, and were not given any medication if they were sick.
Food was the same chicken and rice every day, often too spicy for children to eat, and sometimes spoiled. Other food couldn’t be kept and was thrown away by staff if discovered during regular inspections.
The shelter is run by Favorite Healthcare Staffing, a Kansas-based contractor, which the city paid $100 million to operate since September 2022.
Officials are grappling with how to respond to Chicago’s migrant crisis as progressive Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker appear to be feuding over tens of millions of dollars both will need to fund a solution to the city’s migrant crisis.
The Windy City is struggling to care for more than 34,000 asylum-seekers bussed in from the border by Texas Governor Greg Abbott over the past 18 months. It has spent $156 million on the crisis and still has 14,200 migrants in its 28 shelters, and is fighting with the state of Illinois about where to build more.
Pritzker, alongside Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, pledged to find another $250 million to fund their response. However, that’s $71 million shy of what officials say will be needed in 2024 alone.