Judge Blocks Trump Administration's Deportation of Unaccompanied Migrant Children

A federal judge issued an order preventing the Trump administration from sending unaccompanied migrant children to Guatemala without a deportation order. The judge's decision came after lawyers alerted her to a government effort to deport hundreds of children.

The judge had previously issued a temporary restraining order to stop the deportation of a group of ten migrant children. She then moved up a hearing after learning that some children were already being deported. During the hearing, she announced a broader temporary restraining order, blocking the deportation of any unaccompanied children from Guatemala without a deportation order.

The Justice Department lawyer representing the Trump administration confirmed that deportation planes were prepared to take off but were grounded. The judge instructed the lawyer to inform officials to halt their deportation plans. The children on the planes were to be returned to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

The Justice Department stated that 76 unaccompanied children were scheduled to be sent to Guatemala before the effort was blocked. Sixteen had been returned to HHS custody, with the rest expected to be in HHS care by the evening. HHS houses unaccompanied children in shelters or foster homes until they turn 18 or are placed with a sponsor.

The judge acknowledged the temporary restraining order was "extraordinary" but justified it due to the government's plan to remove the children during a holiday weekend. Lawyers for the children alleged the administration was attempting to deport over 600 migrant minors without allowing them to seek humanitarian protection, potentially exposing them to abuse or persecution.

The Justice Department attorney claimed the administration was not formally deporting the children but repatriating them to reunite them with relatives. However, lawyers for the children disputed this, citing cases where parents did not request repatriation. They also argued that a law requires unaccompanied migrant children from countries other than Mexico to be allowed to see an immigration judge and apply for legal protections before deportation.

The government's legal position was that it could "repatriate" the children based on HHS's authority to reunite unaccompanied alien children with a parent abroad in appropriate cases. An attorney working with migrant minors stated that the government was attempting to deport children with pending claims for legal relief.

Most unaccompanied children crossing the U.S. southern border without legal permission are from Central America and are often teenagers. The Trump administration has sought to make changes to how the U.S. processes unaccompanied children, including making it harder for some relatives to sponsor them and offering voluntary return options. The administration has also directed agencies to conduct "welfare checks" on children released from HHS custody.