Trump Administration Wants To Upend Time Limits For Detaining Migrant Children Set By Decades-Old Court Decree
The 1997 Flores settlement has helped govern the treatment of minors in federal custody for the past 20 years, and has survived numerous court challenges. The Trump administration, however, is proposing a new rule that would lift the 20-day limit established in Flores.
The New York Times:
Trump Administration Moves To Sidestep Restrictions On Detaining Migrant Children
The Trump administration moved on Thursday to remove court-imposed time limits on the detention of migrant children, proposing to end 20 years of judicial oversight and allow families to be held indefinitely in secure facilities as their cases wend through the immigration courts. The proposed new regulation reflects President Trump’s frustration that thousands of families from Central America and elsewhere are continuing to stream across the southwest border, assured in part by guarantees in the current legal process that migrants who arrive with children will not be held for long periods in detention. (Dickerson, 9/6)
The Wall Street Journal:
Trump Administration Wants To Detain Migrant Children Longer
Department of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services officials said Thursday that they want to circumvent the so-called Flores agreement, a 1997 court settlement that prevents authorities from detaining children for more than 20 days. The proposal, announced as a rule change in the Federal Register, signals that officials are looking for ways to detain families together until their immigration cases are decided amid the administration’s efforts to crack down on illegal border-crossers. The proposal is almost certain to face legal challenges. The administration earlier this year asked a federal judge in California to let officials detain families together beyond the 20-day limit and was denied. (Caldwell and Gurman, 9/6)
Politico:
Trump Family Detention Plan Challenges Court Settlement
"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," Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said in a written statement. "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." (Hesson, 9/6)
The Hill:
Trump Administration Moves To End Limits On Detaining Migrant Children
The proposal has been in the works for months, as the Trump administration and congressional Republicans have sought ways to deal with the influx of families illegally crossing the country’s southern border. (Weixel, 9/6)
In other news —
Modern Healthcare:
HHS Boosts Funds To Care For Detained Migrant Children
HHS is boosting the $1.3 billion originally earmarked this year for care of migrant unaccompanied minors by more than $100 million, a sign that the system's expenses are increasing under enhanced scrutiny following the Trump administration's halted family separation policy. "HHS is utilizing the secretary's transfer and reprogramming authorities to provide additional funds for the care of unaccompanied alien children," HHS Deputy Secretary Eric Hargan said in a statement, noting that the department used its transfer authorities to supplement program funding in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2017. (Luthi, 9/6)
The Associated Press:
Group: Reports Of Sex Abuse At Kids' Shelters Need Inquiry
A group formed in the wake of outrage over the separation of immigrant families at the Mexico border criticized an investigation by the state of Arizona into reports that some of those children were sexually abused at shelters. The group Uncage and Reunite Families, composed of elected officials, community activists and religious leaders called on Gov. Doug Ducey to launch an independent investigation after the one conducted by the state health services department only found issues with personnel records and delayed background checks. (Galvan, 9/6)
The Associated Press:
Suit Seeks Payout For Immigrant Families Separated At Border
President Donald Trump's administration should be held accountable for emotional trauma inflicted on children who were separated from their parents at the U.S. border, lawyers say in a lawsuit that could result in compensation for more than 2,000 immigrant families. The federal class-action lawsuit filed late Wednesday seeks unspecified monetary damages and the creation of a fund to pay for mental health treatment for children who were taken away from their parents after the Republican administration adopted a policy requiring anyone who crossed the border illegally to be prosecuted. (Richer, 9/6)
WBUR:
Boston Nonprofit Sues To Get Compensation For Children Traumatized By Family Separation Policy
A Boston-based nonprofit is suing the Trump administration on behalf of children who were separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border as a result of President Trump's now-defunct family separation policy. The class action suit asks the federal government to address the long-lasting ramifications of that policy, including the toll on the mental health of the children. (Dooling, 9/6)
Stat:
FDA Official: Trump Restrictions On Hiring Foreign Scientists Hurts Recruitment
The Trump administration’s restrictions on hiring foreign scientists are making it more difficult for the agency to attract top scientific talent, a top Food and Drug Administration official said Thursday. “[The policy] definitely has created an additional challenge, I think, for us,” said Melanie Keller, the FDA’s acting associate commissioner for scientific and clinical recruitment. She added that “the U.S. just doesn’t graduate the number that we need to fill our vacancies.” (Swetlitz, 9/6)
