At Hearing, Lawmaker Raises Concerns That Border Patrol Officials Are Hiding Serious Issues Within The Agency

Rep. Kathleen Rice (D-N.Y.) questioned officials at a House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Border Security, Facilitation and Operations hearing about the administration's efforts to prevent child deaths while in U.S. custody.

ProPublica: Border Patrol Officials Dodged Congress’ Questions About Migrant Children’s Deaths

The Trump administration sought to “conceal information” about the death of a 16-year-old Guatemalan boy in Border Patrol custody, a House subcommittee chairwoman said at a hearing Tuesday. Rep. Kathleen Rice, D-N.Y., said the Department of Homeland Security has “consistently failed to maintain transparency by stymying congressional inquiries. (Moore, 1/14)

In other news —

Dallas Morning News: Asylum Seekers Forced To Wait In Mexico Get Video Access To Attorneys In U.S.

Faced with a rising humanitarian crisis, immigrant rights organizations from both sides of the border on Tuesday launched a pilot program to create a virtual bridge aimed at providing legal aid to thousands of asylum seekers forced to wait in Mexico. The program, Puentes Libres, or Free Bridges, spearheaded by Texas state Sen. Jose Rodriguez and Juarez Mayor Armando Cabada, will help migrants awaiting the outcome of their U.S. asylum cases consult with U.S.-based lawyers via teleconferencing. Organizers hope the program will serve as a model for other border communities, where close to 60,000 migrants are stuck in Mexico waiting for their cases to go through U.S. immigration courts because of recent Trump administration policies. (Corchado, 1/14)

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