Judge OKs Settlement, Blocks US Border Family Separation for 8 Years
TL/DR –
A federal judge in California has approved a court settlement that prevents U.S. border officials from reinstating the Trump-era “zero tolerance” family separation policy for eight years. The settlement, between the American Civil Liberties Union and the Biden administration, also offers social and legal benefits to migrant families affected by the policy, but does not include monetary compensation. The policy had resulted in around 5,000 children being separated from their parents; the ACLU estimates that between 500 and 1,000 children remain separated from their families.
California Federal Judge Approves Settlement Barring Revival of Family Separation Policy
A California federal judge sanctioned a court settlement on Friday, barring federal U.S. border officials from resuscitating the Trump-era “zero tolerance” family separation policy for the next eight years. The settlement, reached between the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Biden administration, prohibits the federal government from separating migrant families solely to prosecute parents for illegal entry into the U.S., except for limited exceptions like when a parent poses a child risk.
The agreement, which doesn’t include monetary compensation, offers social and legal benefits to migrant families affected by the Trump-era practice. This contentious policy resulted in the separation of approximately 5,000 children from their parents.
U.S. District Court Judge Dana Sabraw, who approved the settlement at a San Diego hearing, is expected to issue a formal order outlining the agreement on Monday, said Lee Gelernt, the lead ACLU attorney in the case. Gelernt described the settlement as a vital step towards closing a dark chapter of the Trump administration, marked by the traumatic separation of children from their parents.
In 2018, Sabraw prohibited the Trump administration from separating migrant children from their parents and mandated officials to reunite separated families. At Friday’s hearing, Sabraw labeled the family separation policy as one of the most disgraceful chapters in U.S. history, characterizing the deportation of parents without their children as “simply cruel.”
Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump has not dismissed the possibility of reinstating his infamous border separation policy during his 2024 campaign trail. On the other hand, President Biden, soon after his inauguration, established a task force that has successfully reunited hundreds of migrant families. The task force has also granted temporary legal status and work permits to these families.
The ACLU estimates that between 500 and 1,000 children, separated from their parents due to the Trump-era policy, are still apart from their families.
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