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 agenda cornerstone that since the s has offered protections to child expatriates in federal custody in a move that likely will be challenged by advocates Related Articles NOAA predicts above average number of storms in hurricane season starting June Bored with manicured lawns specific homeowners adopt No Mow May all year long Mahmoud Khalil permitted to hold newborn son for the first time despite objections from cabinet 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 The protections in place known as the Flores Settlement largely limit to hours the amount of time that child foreigners traveling alone or with family and detained by the U S Confines Patrol can be kept in U S Customs and Edge 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 ruling body under Trump has attempted to end the approach In August the first Trump administration demanded 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 expatriates were lifted for the U S Department of Soundness and Human Services after new guidelines were put in place last year The Department of Homeland Prevention is still beholden to the agreement including Customs and Margin Protection which detains and processes children after their arrival in the U S with or without their parents Children then are usually issued 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 leadership failed to provide adequate conditions for children as in a occurrence in Texas where nearly children had to be moved from a Edge Patrol facility following reports they were receiving inadequate food water and sanitation Court-appointed monitors provide oversight of the agreement and statement 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