The State Department on Tuesday demanded the immediate release of Jonathan David Muir Burgos, the 16-year-old son of a Cuban evangelical pastor who has spent three months in a maximum-security adult prison after authorities accused him of participating in March protests over blackouts and food shortages in Moron, Ciego de Avila.

The demand came from Riley M. Barnes, assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor, in a post on the bureau’s official X account.

"Today marks three months since Jonathan David Muir Burgos, aged 16, was sent to a high-security Cuban prison, allegedly for participating in a protest," he said.

"He urgently needs medical attention, which he has not received. No one, especially no child, should be jailed for their political or religious beliefs. We call on the Cuban regime to release him immediately along with all unjustly detained political prisoners," Barnes added.

Jonathan was detained March 16 after accompanying his father, Pastor Elier Muir Avila, to a police summons in Moron, days after demonstrators damaged a Communist Party office during protests over power outages lasting more than 26 hours and severe food shortages.

The pastor was released that evening. His son was not.

Prosecutors later charged the teenager with "sabotage," an offense Amnesty International says carries a possible 15-year sentence.

Despite his age, the teenager was sent to Canaleta, an adult maximum-security facility in Ciego de Avila, where his family says he has gone untreated for dyshidrosis, infections, intestinal parasites, and vasovagal episodes.

On March 24, the Provincial People's Court rejected a habeas corpus petition that would have required officials to produce him and justify his confinement, according to the Havana Times.

International pressure has built steadily.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights gave Havana five days in April to account for the boy's condition and later granted precautionary measures, finding his life and health at risk of irreparable harm.

Amnesty International designated him a prisoner of conscience in a May 19 urgent action.

Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., and Maria Elvira Salazar, R-Fla., have publicly demanded his release. Elier Muir has also appealed directly to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Pope Leo XIV.

he Cuban government has responded to the campaign in part by circulating images of Jonathan playing the piano in detention. His father called the footage a form of manipulation, saying the photos were taken without informed consent. His mother, Minervina Burgos Lopez, has also publicly rejected the regime's narrative.

The teenager turned 17 behind bars.

His case, along with that of 16-year-old Christian de Jesus Crespo Alvarez, who is also being held at Canaleta, has become a focal point in what rights groups describe as a broader crackdown on minors arrested during the March unrest.