Judge extends court-monitoring agreement for children in Customs and Border Protection custody

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McAllen, Texas (AP) — A federal judge extended a court agreement on Thursday ensuring safe and sanitary conditions for migrant children in federal custody a day after U.S. Customs and Border Protection was set to begin self-monitoring.

The agreement originally ended Wednesday, but District Judge Dolly M. Gee in California decided to extend it by 18 months.

“CBP is not yet capable of wholly fulfilling its responsibilities under the 2022 Settlement and the FSA (Flores Settlement Agreement) without the additional support provided by the JCM (Juvenile Care Monitor) and the Court,” the judge wrote in her order.

Customs and Border Protection did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A court-appointed monitor will continue to visit and report on conditions for children in custody at U.S. Customs and Border Protection facilities in the Rio Grande Valley and El Paso, Texas.

Concerns were initially raised during the first Trump administration when reports surfaced of children separated from family for weeks and held in poor sanitary conditions. In 2019, a Guatemalan teenager died in custody as a result of a flu outbreak and a lack of proper medical care in a federal facility in Weslaco, Texas.

The parties reached an agreement that was implemented in July 2022 for two and a half years. It allowed a court monitor to keep track of progress made by Customs and Border Protection. In the last report filed in December, the monitor noted positive changes while also mentioning a continued practice of separating some parents from their children during their time in custody.

The monitor later told the court of discrepancies with Customs and Border Protection data suggesting the agency underreported the number of children who had exceeded the recommended time in custody of three days.

Customs and Border Protection was scheduled to begin self-monitoring its facilities on Wednesday. The agency said in December it was ready for the task after issuing new guidance on family unity and increased training on detention policies, guidelines and regulations that rolled back court oversight under the Biden administration. Plaintiffs argued the agency was not ready, citing testimony from minors held in Customs and Border Protection facilities, and they requested the renewal of the court agreement.

“No child should be forced to spend weeks inside a windowless pod in dirty clothes with no access to the outdoors. We are relieved the Court ruled to force CBP to meet its obligations under the settlement,” Mishan Wroe, senior attorney for the National Youth Law Center, said in a statement.

Trump officials have said they plan to end “catch-and-release” policies and stop the release of migrants into the U.S. while they wait for immigration court hearings. The changes could result in longer detention times exceeding the court-recommended 72 hours for families.