Judge rules government can force-feed detained immigrant on hunger strike

A federal judge in California granted a government request to force-feed and hydrate a Russian immigration detainee who has refused to eat for more than two weeks.

The Department of Homeland Security filed the request for an emergency temporary restraining order after it alleged the 41-year-old detainee has not eaten food since Aug. 4. The man has been drinking, but staff at the Otay Mesa Detention Center, which is run by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said they don’t know how much water he has consumed. The detainee has also refused medical examinations, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.