ICE appears in family unified interviews

McAllen, Texas (AP) – President Donald Trump’s administration has begun demanding parents seeking to be reunited with children who have only moved to the US to show up for interviews Immigrants Officers may question them, according to policy memos obtained by the Associated Press.

Legal advocacy groups say the change has led to the arrest of some parents, but children remain in US custody. The US Department of Homeland Security did not review or answer any questions regarding the July 9 directive, so please refer to the statement instead. The Biden administration’s struggle Appropriately review and monitor the home in which the children are located.

The Refugee Resettlement Office, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which provides custody of children crossing the border without a parent or legal guardian, has issued the directive. The agency said the goal was to ensure that sponsors (usually parents or guardians) are properly examined.

This memo is one of several steps that the Trump administration has involved children who came to the US alone. On Labor Day weekend I tried to eliminate a child in Guatemala They either lived in shelters or with their foster family.

A July 9 memo on sponsors said they would need to meet in person to verify their identification. Previously, sponsors could send ID documents online. The directive states that “federal law enforcement may exist to meet unique mission goals that may include sponsoring interviews.”

Neha Desai, managing director of human rights at the National Center for Youth Law, said the change would provide a “built-in opportunity” for US immigration and customs enforcement agencies to arrest their parents.

Mary Miller Flowers, director of policy and legislative affairs at the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights, said he is aware of the incident in which an immigration officer arrested the father of a child under the age of 12 who appeared for identification. “As a result, mommy is afraid to come forward, and this kid is stuck,” Miller Flowers said.

Desai also said the interview is unlikely to produce something the intelligence authorities have yet to have. The review already included home studies and background checks conducted by the office of refugee resettlement staff, rather than immigration enforcement.

The Refugee Resettlement Office said it communicated “clearly and proactively” with parents and could be interviewed by ice and other law enforcement officials. Parents could refuse to be interviewed by ICE, saying that the refusal would not affect decisions about whether the child would be released by them.

“The goal is to ensure that all children are released to a stable, safe environment and fully vetted sponsors by ensuring that potential sponsors are the same individuals who submit support documentation with valid IDs,” the statement said.

However, Desai is aware of a situation where it can only decline after its sponsors are not notified and retreats.

“We know sponsors who are deeply, deeply afraid of this interview, but given their resolve to detain a child, some are still willing to move forward,” she said.

The Trump administration refers to Biden

Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin has issued a statement that does not address the arrest or mentions certain changes. Instead, she said she is trying to protect children released under President Joe Biden’s administration.

A federal watchdog report released last year addressed the Biden administration’s struggle amid rising immigrant children Arrived at the US-Mexico border in 2021. The Trump administration has dispatched homeland security and FBI agents Visiting the children.

Another recent change allows ICE to interview children while they are in government-run shelters. This happened on July 2, according to another directive that the Refugee Resettlement Bureau, who was also sent to the shelter acquired by the Associated Press, was sent to.

The agency provided lawyers to the children, and said their staff would not participate in interviews with law enforcement. Children’s legal advocates say that when they receive an hour or so notification for interviews, children often don’t understand the purpose of the interview or are misled by officers.

“If you don’t know what the interview is for or where it’s going, do you really agree with this process?” along with the young center, Miller Flower said.

Jennifer Podkle, chief of Global Policy for Children in Needs of Defence, said some executives lack language skills, trauma information interview techniques and knowledge of the unified process.

“It seems to be designed solely to cast more broadly immigration enforcement against adults,” she said.

Adds hurdles to a set of policy change reintegration processes

The July change is one of the steps the Trump administration took to step up the screening of parents looking to reunite with their children.

The administration needs fingerprints from sponsors and adults living in homes where children are released. That’s also necessary Identification or proof of income that can only be obtained by people legally present in the United States, and the introduction of DNA testing and home visits by immigration officers.

Children have spent more time in government-run shelters under increased screening. The average length of stay for people released was 171 days in July, down from the peak of 217 days in April, but far exceeded the 37th January, Trump took office.

Around 2,000 unaccompanied children took over government custody in July.

Shaina Aber, executive director of Acacia Center for Justice for Justice, analyzes child custody analysis data and attributes longer custody times to policy changes.

“The agency’s missions are confused and intertwined,” she added. “ORR’s mission seems somewhat compromised in that they are doing more on the immigration enforcement side now, and they are not immigration enforcement agencies.”