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| Trump Administration Moves to Sidestep Restrictions on Detaining Migrant Children | |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Moving to bypass restrictions on the detention of migrant families in federal custody, the Trump administration introduced on Thursday a regulation that would upend a federal court settlement that requires such families to be released after 20 days. | Moving to bypass restrictions on the detention of migrant families in federal custody, the Trump administration introduced on Thursday a regulation that would upend a federal court settlement that requires such families to be released after 20 days. |
| The so-called Flores settlement has become a prime target in the administration’s attempt to punish migrants for crossing the border with their children as a means of deterrence. Administration officials have long believed that migrants, primarily from Central America, are bringing children to the United States to shield themselves from consequences of crossing the border without permission. | The so-called Flores settlement has become a prime target in the administration’s attempt to punish migrants for crossing the border with their children as a means of deterrence. Administration officials have long believed that migrants, primarily from Central America, are bringing children to the United States to shield themselves from consequences of crossing the border without permission. |
| “Today, legal loopholes significantly hinder the department’s ability to appropriately detain and promptly remove family units that have no legal basis to remain in the country,” said the secretary of Homeland Security, Kristjen Nielsen. “This rule addresses one of the primary pull factors for illegal immigration and allows the federal government to enforce immigration laws as passed by Congress.” | “Today, legal loopholes significantly hinder the department’s ability to appropriately detain and promptly remove family units that have no legal basis to remain in the country,” said the secretary of Homeland Security, Kristjen Nielsen. “This rule addresses one of the primary pull factors for illegal immigration and allows the federal government to enforce immigration laws as passed by Congress.” |
| The proposal is likely to end up in court, where the federal district judge overseeing the Flores consent decree, Dolly M. Gee, has rejected repeated attempts to modify its provisions. | The proposal is likely to end up in court, where the federal district judge overseeing the Flores consent decree, Dolly M. Gee, has rejected repeated attempts to modify its provisions. |
| The settlement stems from a 1997 consent decree reached in litigation over a migrant child based on claims that federal detention was damaging, physically and emotionally, to children’s health. In 2016, the courts extended the settlement to apply to migrant families. | The settlement stems from a 1997 consent decree reached in litigation over a migrant child based on claims that federal detention was damaging, physically and emotionally, to children’s health. In 2016, the courts extended the settlement to apply to migrant families. |
| The administration has challenged the settlement repeatedly, rhetorically and in court, referring to it as a legal loophole permitting illegal immigration. But as recently as early this year, when Attorney General Jeff Sessions installed a new zero-tolerance border policy that resulted in the jailing of thousands of migrant parents, the administration did not succeed in winning a reprieve from the settlement’s provisions protecting children from lengthy confinement. | The administration has challenged the settlement repeatedly, rhetorically and in court, referring to it as a legal loophole permitting illegal immigration. But as recently as early this year, when Attorney General Jeff Sessions installed a new zero-tolerance border policy that resulted in the jailing of thousands of migrant parents, the administration did not succeed in winning a reprieve from the settlement’s provisions protecting children from lengthy confinement. |
| Immigrant advocates decried the move for new regulations as a workaround that would put migrant families at risk. | Immigrant advocates decried the move for new regulations as a workaround that would put migrant families at risk. |
| “The Trump administration has been whittling away at the basic rights of women and children since they came into office. Efforts to weaken or eliminate basic child protection standards by calling them a burden or loopholes, and eliminating their obligations for the basic care of children, is just another example of the administration’s abdication of human rights,” said Michelle Brané, director of the Migrant Rights and Justice program at the Women’s Refugee Commission. “The court has already had to to step in repeatedly to uphold these basic child welfare principles. It is clear that the administration is incapable of holding themselves accountable.” | “The Trump administration has been whittling away at the basic rights of women and children since they came into office. Efforts to weaken or eliminate basic child protection standards by calling them a burden or loopholes, and eliminating their obligations for the basic care of children, is just another example of the administration’s abdication of human rights,” said Michelle Brané, director of the Migrant Rights and Justice program at the Women’s Refugee Commission. “The court has already had to to step in repeatedly to uphold these basic child welfare principles. It is clear that the administration is incapable of holding themselves accountable.” |
| The proposed rule, now under review through the departments of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services, would enshrine into regulation the relevant terms of the Flores settlement and terminate the long-running litigation. It would “satisfy the basic purpose” of the settlement agreement by ensuring that all migrant children in government custody “are treated with dignity, respect and special concern for their particular vulnerability as minors,” the administration said in its announcement. | The proposed rule, now under review through the departments of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services, would enshrine into regulation the relevant terms of the Flores settlement and terminate the long-running litigation. It would “satisfy the basic purpose” of the settlement agreement by ensuring that all migrant children in government custody “are treated with dignity, respect and special concern for their particular vulnerability as minors,” the administration said in its announcement. |
| The new regulatory structure would allow Immigration and Customs Enforcement to hold families with children in licensed facilities or those that meet ICE’s family residential standards, as evaluated by independent reviewers engaged by ICE. | The new regulatory structure would allow Immigration and Customs Enforcement to hold families with children in licensed facilities or those that meet ICE’s family residential standards, as evaluated by independent reviewers engaged by ICE. |
| The public has 60 days to comment on the proposed rules, followed by a 45-day period in which lawyers who negotiated the original settlement can challenge the government’s move in court. | The public has 60 days to comment on the proposed rules, followed by a 45-day period in which lawyers who negotiated the original settlement can challenge the government’s move in court. |