Trump administration files motion to end protections for immigrant children in federal custody

By VALERIE GONZALEZ McALLEN Texas AP The Trump administration filed a motion on Thursday to end a program cornerstone that since the s has offered protections to child immigrants in federal custody in a move that likely will be challenged by advocates Related Articles Pope Leo XIV makes first U S bishop appointment fills San Diego vacancy Who were the Israeli Embassy staffers shot dead days before getting engaged Prosecutor says a Michigan police officer who killed a Black motorist won t face a second trial Stop making cents US Mint moves forward with plans to kill the penny Healey condemns hate-fueled killings outside Jewish museum The protections in place known as the Flores Settlement largely limit to hours the amount of time that child displaced persons traveling alone or with family and detained by the U S Perimeter Patrol can be kept in U S Customs and Frontier Protection custody They also ensure the children are kept in safe and sanitary conditions The Flores settlement is named for a Salvadoran girl Jenny Flores whose lawsuit alleging widespread mistreatment of children in custody in the s prompted special oversight This is the second time the federal regime under Trump has attempted to end the protocol In August the first Trump administration questioned a judge to dissolve the agreement Its motion eventually was struck down in December by the th U S Circuit Court of Appeals Under the Biden administration oversight protections for child transients were lifted for the U S Department of Wellness and Human Services after new guidelines were put in place last year The Department of Homeland Shield is still beholden to the agreement including Customs and Boundary Protection which detains and processes children after their arrival in the U S with or without their parents Children then are usually published with their families or sent to a shelter operated by HHS though processing times often go up when the number of people entering increases in a short time period Even with the agreement in place there have been instances where the federal executive failed to provide adequate conditions for children as in a situation in Texas where nearly children had to be moved from a Margin Patrol facility following reports they were receiving inadequate food water and sanitation Court-appointed monitors provide oversight of the agreement and account noncompliant facilities to Chief U S District Judge Dolly M Gee of the Central District of California CBP was set to resume its own oversight but in January a federal judge ruled it was not ready and extended the use of court-appointed monitors for another months