A woman currently hospitalized after she was detained by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement officers in Sherman Oaks last week said Tuesday through her attorneys the officers yelled at her to “stop” vomiting and laughed at her as she was close to losing consciousness.

The statement from Milagro Solis Portillo was released Tuesday, July 8, by Immigration Defenders Law Center a day after local leaders, immigration activists and faith leaders denounced the presence of federal agents inside the lobby of Dignity Health Glendale Memorial Hospital, where Portillo was being treated for injuries sustained while she was detained on July 3.

“It was inhumane how ICE arrested me,” the statement said. “They refused to identify themselves or say anything to me, they twisted my arms, they threw me on the ground. For five minutes, I asked them why they were arresting me and what I had done, and they just told me to shut up.

“In the car, I started panicking and vomiting and drowning in my own vomit,” she said. “When they saw how badly I was choking, they finally exited the freeway into a secluded area.”

The Department of Homeland Security declined to answer questions regarding Portillo’s detainment and allegations. They instead reiterated a statement provided Monday.

“ICE takes its commitment to promoting safe, secure, humane environments for those in our custody very seriously,” the statement said. “It is a longstanding practice to provide comprehensive medical care from the moment an alien enters ICE custody. This includes access to medical appointments and 24-hour emergency care.”

DHS also said Portillo is an “illegal alien” from El Salvador who was previously deported. They also claimed she has been arrested for various crimes including false identification, theft, and burglary.

Portillo, in her statement through the law center, said she has “never had a single criminal conviction.”

Officials with Immigrant Defenders Law Center said Portillo was arrested at her home and claimed that two officers refused to identify themselves or produce a signed judicial warrant for her arrest. They claimed the officers twisted her arms and threw her to the ground, leading to injuries so severe she began vomiting and choking in the car while she was handcuffed.

Portillo sat in her own vomit for about eight hours between the time it started and the time she was admitted to the hospital, the law firm said.

When they met with her in the hospital on Friday, “her hands were still swollen from the handcuffs,” the attorneys said. “Milagro requires additional treatment and an extended hospitalization. ICE has contracted private detention officers that have been monitoring her, and their presence creates a hostile environment.”

Sarah Houston, managing attorney at Immigrant Defenders, said at Monday’s press conference the law center was representing Portillo. Immigrant Defenders said Houston was denied entry into the hospital Monday morning to visit with Portillo. Since then, attorneys have been in contact with a staff member who “is committed to allowing our legal team to enter the facility should they face issues with the lobby and staff.”

The law firm also called on hospital staff to “hold ICE accountable for providing the documentation necessary to justify the release of any health information about Milagro to their officers and agents and to continue to refuse ICE access to private areas unless they have a judicial warrant.”

The law firm said Tuesday that while Houston, who has a law license in the state of New York, spoke at Monday’s press conference, she is not the attorney who will represent Portillo in court.

“I have spent more than 15 years of my life here in the United States,” Portillo said in her statement. “I wouldn’t be safe in any other country. I have never had a single criminal conviction.”