Judge halts deportation of hundreds of Guatemalan children
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President Trump and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, in July. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
A federal judge told the Trump administration not to deport 10 Guatemalan children in a temporary order on Sunday that also blocks the removal of hundreds of other unaccompanied minors.
Why it matters: Some of the children were on planes facing deportation within hours when District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan issued the temporary restraining order, allowing them to stay in the U.S., for now, to challenge their removal.
- A Justice Department Sunday evening status report confirmed that as a result of the D.C.-based Biden-appointed judge's order, the affected children were "deplaned and are in the process of being returned" to the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR).
Driving the news: The National Immigration Law Center filed a lawsuit early Sunday, seeking to block the deportation of the 10 children, ages 10 to 17, whom it said were facing deportation within hours.
- The law center noted the administration had identified over 600 children from Guatemala to potentially deport "as a part of a first of its kind pilot program through an agreement negotiated with the Guatemalan government."
- It said the children the center represents "face abuse, neglect, persecution, or torture" if returned to Guatemala.
- Sooknanan's order that prohibits deportations for 14 days extends to the other children identified for deportation.
- "I have the government attempting to remove minor children from the country in the wee hours of the morning on a holiday weekend," the judge said, per reports. "That's surprising."
Zoom in: Among the defendants named in the suit are the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Justice Department, Attorney General Pam Bondi, the Department of Health and Human Service's ORR and HHS.
- The ORR must provide for custody and care of unaccompanied minors who have been apprehended and referred by agencies including ICE, per congressional legislation from 2002.
- "After HHS assumes care of unaccompanied children, following their apprehension by other agencies at the border, the minors are typically not allowed to be deported without receiving the benefit of full immigration proceedings," NPR notes.
What they're saying: "In the dead of night on a holiday weekend, the Trump administration ripped vulnerable, frightened children from their beds and attempted to return them to danger in Guatemala," said Efrén Olivares, from the National Immigration Law Center, in a statement Sunday.
- "We are heartened the Court prevented this injustice from occurring before hundreds of children suffered irreparable harm."
The other side: White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller said on X Sunday, "The minors have all self-reported that their parents are back home in Guatemala. But a Democrat judge is refusing to let them reunify with their parents."
Zoom out: The case marks the latest clash between the Trump administration and the courts on its aggressive policy targeting undocumented immigrants as it ramps up deportation proceedings.
- In March, President Trump demanded the impeachment of a federal judge who temporarily blocked deportation flights to El Salvador of Venezuelans accused of being gang members.
- In June, the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to resume deportations of migrants to countries that were not their place of origin.
More from Axios:
- Trump plan cuts legal help for thousands of migrant kids
- Children increasingly bear brunt of Trump's deportation push
- Trump's team wants more oversight of kids in migrant detention
Editor's note: This article has been updated with more context.
