The Trump administration is required to restart legal and social service contracts for thousands of immigrant families separated during President Donald Trump’s first term in office. That’s the latest ruling to come from a years-long court case over the so-called zero-tolerance policy.
Thousands of families were separated at the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona and other states under the zero tolerance policy — which allowed border officers to refer immigrant adults for criminal prosecution and send their children to separate facilities.
A lawsuit led by the ACLU sought to reunite families and provide legal aid and other benefits to help them stay in the US. They reached a settlement agreement with the Biden administration.
“There are thousands of families who have been reunited but unfortunately we believe there are hundreds who remain separated this many years later because we are still trying to find them,” said Lee Gelernt, an attorney the ACLU and lead counsel in the case.
He says now the agreement is now in jeopardy.
“The Trump administration has now come in and tried to blow up the settlement by canceling contracts for legal service providers and social service providers that are essential,” he said.
Gelernt says contracts were ended starting in April. As first reported by Courthouse News, a federal court ordered services to resume last Thursday and a status hearing is scheduled Friday.
Gelernt says families risk getting separated again if services don’t resume soon, because deadlines for asylum applications are coming up. He says the ACLU could return to court to ask for those deadlines to be extended.
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The group says that’s in response to comments from Trump administration officials like Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin — who told reporters earlier this month that ICE isn’t planning operations targeting polling locations, but that agents could be sent to address a "specific threats." -
Temporary Protected Status provides protection from deportation and a work permit. It’s available to nationals from countries deemed unsafe because of things like conflict or natural disaster. The status expired this week for some 170,000 Salvadorans. -
The state Court of Appeals has rejected efforts to void a measure approved by voters in 2024 on immigration. -
Back in January, federal immigration agents raided each of the 14 Zipps Sports Grill locations across metro Phoenix. They were looking for undocumented workers and ended up arresting dozens of them. -
The program was established by Congress almost two decades ago alongside federal anti-trafficking laws.
