The federal government is required to “expeditiously” house immigrant children who cross into the United States illegally, rather than allowing them to remain in unsafe open spaces along the border, a Federal District Court judge ruled Wednesday night.
The ruling, issued by Judge Dolly M. Gee of the United States District Court for Central California, sided largely with lawyers representing the children in a class action lawsuit. It found that minors on the premises were under the lawful control of the Department of Homeland Security and therefore entitled to certain rights and protections, such as a safe and sanitary environment, even if they had not yet been formally processed.
The court order, which takes effect immediately, is expected to affect thousands of children and potentially many more. It will likely force US Customs and Border Protection to devote additional resources to keep up with the flow of migrants. The agency said it had already more than tripled capacity at processing centers in San Diego and increased the number of buses and transportation staff to expedite arrivals.
The decision comes amid intense political and cultural debate over the rights of immigrants — including children — who enter the United States without permission. Because of the influx at the US-Mexico border, immigration processing centers in south San Diego County are strained and migrants have waited for hours or sometimes days in makeshift camps to be taken into custody.
So far the outdoor encampments are only in California, but the order’s language wasn’t limited to the state, so if similar encampments spring up in other border states, the ruling will likely stand.
Outdoor spaces lack shelter, food and sanitation, which has given way to a range of public health concerns for the most vulnerable. Unaccompanied children and young families sometimes arrive in poor health, according to aid workers and volunteer doctors on the ground, suffering from traumatic injuries or chronic health conditions that require drugs that have long run out.
During hot desert days, dehydration and heatstroke have become common problems, according to aid groups, and nighttime temperatures, wind and rain create conditions ripe for hypothermia. Doctors are particularly concerned about these figures for children, as many have lower body fat than adults and may be malnourished from their travels.
The government had argued that the children were not yet in US custody, so it had no obligation to provide services. The judge cited Border Patrol agents’ control over minors’ ability to leave the sites — and their power to influence whether children have access to help and medical care — as the rationale for her decision.
“The ability to exercise discretion and make decisions affecting the health and welfare of the child is indicative of maintaining legal custody of the child, regardless of whether that decision is to provide or not to provide care,” the 12-page order states. “Juveniles, unlike adults, are always in some form of custody.”
Judge Gee denied the lawyers’ request for a specific time limit on how long minors could be held at the sites, but said the Department of Homeland Security should process all children “expeditiously” and place them in facilities that are safe, healthy, and “consistent with DHS’s concern for the particular vulnerability of minors.”
He said Border Patrol officers must stop directing minors to the sites or detain them at the sites “except for such time as is reasonably required by DHS to prepare the minor and/or actively arrange for the minor’s transfer to a more appropriate installation”.
Attorneys representing the children had argued they should be given housing and services under a 1997 consent decree known as the Flores settlement agreement. This agreement established standards of treatment for immigrant children in state custody, requiring that they be given access to basic provisions such as restrooms, food, and drinking water, and that they generally be held in facilities licensed by the state to care for children in the child care system. care. Lawyers filed a motion in February calling for those conditions to be imposed on children in outdoor spaces.
At issue was whether children who crossed the southern border, alone or with their families, were the responsibility of the federal government while they remained outside awaiting surrender to US border authorities.
In the motion, lawyers argued that children who have not yet been formally apprehended deserve the same safe and sanitary housing as those who have already been detained, since they are prohibited from moving from the camps and have no way to return to the border.
In response, Justice Department lawyers argued that because the children had not yet been formally taken into custody by US customs officials, they were not required to provide such services. They did not dispute that conditions in the camps were bad.
“CBP apprehends and transports minors to secure and sanitary US Border Patrol facilities in a prompt manner,” the defense attorneys wrote. “But until that happens, the claimants are not in DHS custody,” they said.
A senior U.S. Customs and Border Protection official said he could not comment on the legal issue, but stressed that the current immigration system is not equipped to handle the influx of immigrants arriving at the border. He noted that the court rulings were not accompanied by additional resources to make the orders more feasible.
The court’s latest ruling acknowledged those “practical difficulties” but said the agency “does not process class members as quickly as possible,” citing evidence that it “finds the ability to process children more effectively during screening periods.”
