HHS To Shut Down Controversial Florida Facility That Used To Hold Detained Migrant Children
HHS said the decision to eliminate beds was to "ensure fiscal prudence" after officials reported the facility was costing $720,000 a day to run even when no children were left there. The decision is a victory for immigration activists, some of whom protested outside the facility for weeks at a time.
The Associated Press:
Florida Child Migrant Detention Facility Shuts Down
The Trump administration announced Monday that it is shutting down one of the largest U.S. facilities for child migrants, which had come under intense criticism because of its regimented conditions and the contractor's ties to a freshly departed White House official. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement that it has reduced bed capacity from 1,200 to zero and the contract with Comprehensive Health Services Inc. is set to end on Nov. 30. About 2,000 workers will be let go in the coming days. (Gomez Licon, 10/28)
McClatchy:
HHS To Shutter Homestead Detention Center On November 30
Caliburn, the contractor that operates the facility on land owned by the Department of Labor, will not have its federal contract renewed when it expires on Nov. 30 — though the facility will be placed into “warm status,” which means HHS will retain access to Homestead and can reopen it. The remaining staff members at Homestead will be released in the next five to seven days, and the facility’s bed capacity will be reduced to zero, according to the email. (Daugherty and Madan, 10/28)
Vice:
A Migrant-Teen Shelter Accused Of 'Prison-Like' Conditions Is Shutting Down
Unlike most other shelters for migrant children, which are run by nonprofit organizations, Homestead is owned and operated by the for-profit Caliburn. The temporary "influx shelter" cost roughly $750 per night per child to run, three times the cost of permanent, licensed shelters. The closing process actually started some months ago. Homestead stopped taking in new children in July and stopped holding unaccompanied minors altogether in August. (Del Valle, 10/28)
The Hill:
Largest Migrant Children's Shelter To Shutter At End Of November
Homestead is the country's largest “influx” shelter, which houses children who cross the border without parents or family until they can be placed with a sponsor in the U.S. It was meant to only house children for a few days, but many ended up staying for weeks or longer. It has drawn the ire of congressional Democrats and Democratic presidential candidates. Former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas), Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), all 2020 contenders, each visited the facility while in Miami for the first round of Democratic primary debates. Sanders and Warren notably climbed ladders to try to look over the fence. (Weixel, 10/28)
In other immigration news —
BuzzFeed News:
A Google Staffer Helped Sell Trump's Family Separation Policy, Despite The Company's Denials
Google executives misled their own employees last week when they said a former top Department of Homeland Security official who had recently joined the company was “not involved in the family separation policy,” government emails obtained under the Freedom of Information Act reveal. In fact, Miles Taylor, who served as deputy chief of staff and then chief of staff to former Homeland Security secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, was involved in high-level discussions about immigration enforcement, helping to shape the department’s narratives and talking points as one of Nielsen’s trusted lieutenants. (Mac and Leopold, 10/28)
Texas Tribune:
Trump's Remain In Mexico Immigration Policy Expands On Texas-Mexico Border
The Migrant Protection Protocols is now in effect in the Maverick County town of Eagle Pass, which borders the Mexican state of Coahuila. The policy requires most asylum seekers to wait for their court hearings in Mexico after being processed by U.S. immigration officials. (Aguilar, 10/28)
