Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials have signed off on a plan to separate families who are caught crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally, officials briefed on the plans told The New York Times.
According to the unnamed officials, the new Homeland Security secretary, Kirstjen Nielsen, has yet to sign off on the proposal as she has final approval power.
There were rumors in the past few months that President Donald Trump’s administration may implement such a plan. The president has made cracking down on illegal immigration a priority and promised tougher measures to deter illegal border crossings.
The current policy says that families should be kept intact while awaiting a decision on whether they will be deported. That’s why they are either held in special family detention centers or released with a court date. The policy that is being discussed would send parents to adult detention facilities. The children would end up in shelters designed for juveniles or with a “sponsor.” The sponsor could be a relative in the States, but it would not be a surprise if the administration tightens rules on sponsors.
The debate is happening at a time when the administration is facing an influx of people illegally crossing the southern U.S. border. As soon as President Trump took office, the number of people caught crossing the border dropped sharply and only 11,677 apprehensions were recorded in April, according to Customs and Border Protection. But the number has been on the rise, reaching 29,086 in November.
As The New York Times reports, that month, 7,000 “family units” were apprehended, as well as 4,000 “unaccompanied minors,” or children traveling without an adult relative.
Tyler Q. Houlton, a spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security, said that migrating illegally with children was cruel.
“The dangerous illegal journey north is no place for young children and we need to explore all possible measures to protect them,” he said.
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