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What’s next for migrant families separated at U.S.-Mexico border?

The ACLU says that the government is preparing to deport families immediately after reunification.
Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
A man, identified only as Leon, spends time with his daughter Anaveli, 11, as they are cared for in an Annunciation House facility after they were reunited with each other on July 25, 2018 in El Paso, Texas.

The U.S. faced a court-ordered deadline Thursday to reunite parents and children who were separated at the border under the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" crackdown on people entering the country illegally.

The latest numbers

Immigration officials this week told a judge they were on track to reunify more than 1,600 families, while another 914 families have been deemed ineligible for reunification. Meanwhile, more than 450 parents accused of illegally entering the country may have already been deported without their children, according to court documents.

The history

U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw last month ordered the department to reunite the children it separated from their parents under President Donald Trump’s “zero tolerance” policy. The ACLU challenged the federal government in federal court in San Diego.

Under the “zero tolerance” policy, most families caught crossing the border illegally have been charged with a criminal violation. That means parents are sent to adult detention centers. A combination of U.S. law and a 1997 court settlement prevent children from staying in detention centers for more than 20 days, which prompted the Trump administration to separate the families.

The judge set up two deadlines for the federal government. All children under age 5 had to be reunited by July 10. The administration missed that deadline by two days when it completed reunifications of 57 children, but Sabraw has yet to rule on any kind of punishment. The ACLU has requested that the government be required to pay for mental health counseling for the children as punishment.

The second deadline to reunite children 5-17 was Thursday. The government estimates there are 2,551 children in that category.

The legal fight

The ACLU says the government is preparing to quickly deport hundreds of families immediately after their reunification and late Wednesday asked a federal judge to issue a stay blocking the government from deporting families for at least seven days. ACLU attorneys argue that parents who haven't seen their children in months need time to consult with lawyers to figure out their legal options, including whether they should fight their deportation, be deported together or accept deportation but leave their child behind with relatives in the U.S. to pursue asylum on their own.

Government lawyers, however, are fighting the move, arguing that a court-ordered stay on deporting reunited families would interfere with the government's authority to enforce immigration laws.

The reaction

HOUSE DEMOCRATS: “To separate these children from their parents is disgusting and unconscionable," a group of House Democratic lawmakers wrote in a letter sent Wednesday to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. "To then deport the parents from our country is a sign of just how far this Administration will go to demonstrate its hatred and vitriol towards immigrants."

CONGRESSIONAL HISPANIC CAUCUS: The group dashed off a letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions requesting a meeting to discuss their "deep concerns" with the administration's "zero tolerance" policy at the border. “The Trump administration instituted a “zero tolerance” immigration enforcement policy in an effort to deter families trying to enter the country illegally,” they wrote.

U.S. SEN'S JOHN CORNYN (R-TEXAS) AND THOM TILLIS (R-NC): The two senators slammed Democrats for blocking rtheir bill - Keep Families Together and Enforce the Law Act. "I regret that rather than embracing a solution, that there's been an objection to this very reasonable proposal, one which would add additional immigration judges, would move these families to the head of the line so that they can present their case before the judge rather than to just release them into the vast American landscape, many of whom will never be heard from again. I think it's a terrible lost opportunity," said in a statement released Thursday.

TEXAS CIVIL RIGHTS PROJECT: “Chaos and cruelty govern the U.S. government’s treatment of families on the border. In South Texas, we’ve witnessed haphazard reunifications in detention center parking lots at all hours of the day and night. Hundreds of other families are detained in Karnes and Dilley detention centers. The Trump Administration’s zero tolerance policy is at the heart of this manufactured crisis. As long as it is in place, the health and well being of children will continue to be at risk, and asylum seekers will continue to be traumatized to frighten away others who have the legal right to seek safety," said Efrén C. Olivares, the group's Racial and Economic Justice Program Director.

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