As Immigration Enforcement System Hits Its ‘Breaking Point,’ Officials Ask For More Time On Separated Children
U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw in San Diego had ordered the government to propose next steps by Wednesday on what to do about the children who were separated as part of the administration's "zero tolerance" policy. The Justice Department wants to submit its plan by April 5. Meanwhile, U.S. Customs and Border Protection is for the first time in more than a decade performing direct releases of migrants, a move that is “the only current option we have” because of overcrowding.
The Associated Press:
US Seeks More Time On How To Address Separated Children
The Trump administration wants more time to say how it will address potentially thousands of children who were separated from their families at the border. U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw in San Diego had ordered the government to propose next steps by Wednesday on what to do about children who were separated on or after July 1, 2017. His previous order to reunify families applied only to children in custody on June 26, 2018. (3/27)
The Washington Post:
U.S. Has Hit ‘Breaking Point’ At Border Amid Immigration Surge, Customs And Border Protection Chief Says
The nation’s top border official warned that the U.S. immigration enforcement system along the nation’s southern boundary is at “the breaking point” and said Wednesday that authorities are having to release migrants into the country after cursory background checks because of a crush of asylum-seeking families with children. Kevin McAleenan, the commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said that for the first time in more than a decade, his agency is “reluctantly” performing direct releases of migrants, meaning they are not turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, they are not detained, they are not given ankle bracelets to track their movements and they are allowed to leave with just a notice to appear in court at a later date. (Miroff and Sacchetti, 3/27)
The Associated Press:
US Will Reassign Border Inspectors As Illegal Crossings Rise
The Trump administration said Wednesday it will temporarily reassign several hundred border inspectors as beleaguered forces already stationed along the U.S.-Mexico border struggle to keep pace with the growing number of migrant families who are showing up at the border in poor health and turning themselves in to agents to request asylum. (Attanasio, 3/27)
The Wall Street Journal:
Border Patrol Stops Prosecuting First-Time Border Crossers In Texas Region
The Trump administration has curtailed a key component of its “zero tolerance” immigration policy, no longer charging first-time illegal border crossers with a crime along a busy stretch of West Texas. Prosecutions of single migrant adults caught crossing the border for the first time in and around Del Rio, Texas, were suspended in February amid lack of jail space, a U.S. Border Patrol official. The policy change hasn’t been previously reported. (Caldwell, 3/28)
