World News | Trump Administration Halts Support for Representing Unaccompanied Children in Immigration Court
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. The Trump administration on Tuesday stopped support for legal representation in immigration court for children who enter the US alone, a setback for those fighting deportation who can't afford a lawyer.
Washington, Feb 19 (AP) The Trump administration on Tuesday stopped support for legal representation in immigration court for children who enter the US alone, a setback for those fighting deportation who can't afford a lawyer.
The Acacia Center for Justice says it serves 26,000 migrant children under its federal contract. The Interior Department gave no explanation for the stop-work order, telling the group only that it was done for "causes outside of your control" and should not be interpreted as a judgment of poor performance. The halt remains in effect until further notice.
Also Read | Pope Francis Health Update: Pointiff Has Pneumonia in Both Lungs but Remains in Good Spirits, Says Vatican.
The Interior Department and Health and Human Services Department, which oversees unaccompanied migrant children, did not respond to requests for comment.
Acacia says it runs the legal aid programme through a network of 85 organisations nationwide that represent children under 18.
The halt comes shortly after the Justice Department briefly stopped support for other contacts to provide legal information and guidance to people facing deportation. It restored funding after being sued by advocacy groups.
People fighting deportation may hire attorneys at their own expense but the government does not provide them. Groups that rely on federal support to represent children said the most vulnerable would suffer most under the decision to halt work on the USD 200 million contract.
"Expecting a child to represent themself in immigration court absurd and deeply unjust," said Christine Lin, director of training and technical assistance at the Center for Gender & Refugee Studies. (AP)
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)