Legless Georgia detainee featured in congressional hearing that preceded Noem’s ouster

Mildred Pierre, wife of Rodney Taylor, at the Georgia Capitol in Atlanta on Jan. 13, 2026 (Ty Tagami/Capitol Beat)

Before she was ousted by President Donald Trump, then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem got grilled by a Georgia congresswoman about the way her agency had treated a Loganville man with severe disabilities.

Double amputee Rodney Taylor had been in federal custody for over a year, since agents swarmed the family vehicle and seized him in January 2025.

The husband and father of two was brought to America from Liberia at age 2 for medical treatment. He was born with a deformed left foot, a missing right foot, and three fingers missing from his right hand. He had lived without both legs since they were amputated when he was a child.