Maine Medical Center nurses protest colleague’s ICE detention
Sarah English, a nurse at Maine Medical Center, reads a statement from a member of Debora Kapisha's family as co-workers rallied outside the hospital to protest Kapisha's detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement last week. (Derek Davis/Staff Photographer)
PORTLAND — Nurses at Maine Medical Center rallied outside the hospital Wednesday to protest the detention of a colleague who was apprehended by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Debora Kapisha, a registered nurse at the hospital, was detained by ICE last week while traveling through Boston Logan International Airport, according to the Maine State Nurses Association.
Kapisha’s detention has outraged her co-workers, who describe her as a kind and compassionate woman who worked hard to earn a nursing degree. More than 100 people, including nurses and community advocates, gathered at the protest to demand that Kapisha be released from custody.
Sam Fillebrown of Scarborough, who works as a nurse in the emergency department at Maine Medical Center in Portland, joins fellow nurses outside the hospital Wednesday to protest after Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained Debora Kapisha, a registered nurse, while she was traveling through Boston Logan International Airport. (Derek Davis/Staff Photographer) Purchase this image
“Nursing is really hard, and we can’t succeed without each other. We show up for each other,” said Sarah Shaw, a registered nurse who works on the same floor as Kapisha. “Having Debora taken away from us — it’s like having a family member taken.”
Kapisha, who is from Zambia in southern Africa, is an asylum seeker who is legally authorized to work in the country, according to the union.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security confirmed Wednesday that she was apprehended last Thursday for allegedly overstaying a visa that expired in November 2024.
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“She will remain in ICE custody pending the outcome of her removal proceedings. She will receive full due process,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Any pending application does not confer legal status.”
Abbey Nelson, a friend of Kapisha’s and a fellow registered nurse, is shocked and angry about Kapisha’s detention. The two had lunch together just last week, Nelson said, when Kapisha comforted her through a difficult day.
Nelson, 24, urged supporters to keep the focus on Kapisha: “This is about Debora, her life and getting her home. We’re fighting, and we’re not gonna stop.”
Nelson described Kapisha as a quiet, caring person of faith. She said Kapisha never expressed concern about detention during surges in ICE activity in Maine.
“She never would’ve expected it. She doesn’t do anything wrong,” Nelson said. “She’s not a criminal.”
During the protest, Sarah English, a registered nurse, read a statement from a member of Kapisha’s family who wished to remain anonymous. The statement said Kapisha has spent her career saving lives.
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The family member said that even while in custody Kapisha’s “spirit refuses to bend. Even there, she is still the woman who lives for others, who carries compassion like a second heartbeat. They can detain her body, but they cannot detain her goodness.”
Ashlynn Ward, a registered nurse at Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, said she traveled to Portland for the protest because she is infuriated about Kapisha’s detention and that Maine Medical Center owner MaineHealth isn’t doing more to help her.
“When you take on one of us, you take on all of us,” Ward said.
State Rep. Deqa Dhalac, D-South Portland, joins nurses Wednesday at Maine Medical Center in Portland to protest the ICE detention of registered nurse Debora Kapisha. (Derek Davis/Staff Photographer) Purchase this image
The protest turned political at times, with protesters urging people to take action against ICE and vote against Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, in November. The union is also urging the hospital system to “take immediate steps to formally sponsor her for permanent residency.”
John Porter, a spokesperson for MaineHealth, said the health care system is providing all appropriate support for Kapisha but declined to share specific information, citing personnel matters.
MaineHealth officials said in a news release Wednesday that they are reaching out to Maine’s congressional delegation for more information about her detention and that all its employees are “thoroughly vetted to assure they are authorized to reside and work in the United States.”
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Britt Crewse, MaineHealth’s southern region president, said in a statement that Kapisha’s detention raises concerns for other care team members who are immigrants.
Julian Bencze, center, joins nurses at the Maine Medical Center protest Wednesday. (Derek Davis/Staff Photographer) Purchase this image
Kapisha is challenging her detention in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts, according to court documents. A federal judge ruled Wednesday that ICE cannot transfer her out of New England before a hearing scheduled for next week. Before that ruling, she was nearly transferred to Louisiana, according to the nurses union.
“Petitioner lives in Maine, and her counsel is also based in Maine,” District Judge F. Dennis Saylor wrote in the ruling. “Accordingly, it would represent a gross inconvenience, at the very least, to transfer petitioner to Louisiana before that custody redetermination hearing has taken place, and could meaningfully impact her and her counsel’s ability to effectively prepare for and participate in that hearing.”
Kerry Doyle, an attorney representing Kapisha, said she was happy to hear about the judge’s decision. She declined to comment further about Kapisha’s case.
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Tagged: immigration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, maine medical center, portland maine
Morgan covers breaking news and public safety for the Portland Press Herald. Before moving to Maine in 2024, she reported for Michigan State University's student-run publication, as well as the Indianapolis. More by Morgan Womack
Chloe Liversidge, from Los Angeles, is a rising senior at Colgate University, where she will serve next year as editor in chief of Maroon-News. She is a general assignment intern for the Press Herald. More by Chloe Liversidge
