Re-Separation of Immigrant Children Persists Despite Settlement

In 2018 Trump administration began a policy that removed children from parents, placing parents in detention and charging them. Class action (Ms. L v. ICE) prompted a judge to halt practice, the judge describing the harm as lasting and excruciating. A 2023 settlement extended protections, asylum pathways, and permits through December 2031. Figures: Ederson Galicia Alva, mother Alva López, DHS Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis, and policy architect Stephen Miller.

MyNorthwest

AP reporting shows more than 11,800 families covered by the 2023 settlement remain separated, while interior sweeps have deported individuals despite discovering they were legally off limits. Tens of thousands of children still have parents detained, and officials acknowledge the full scope of re-separations may never be quantified. The administration has not indicated whether the legal-services contract ending in August will be renewed.

MyNorthwest

DHS Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis told reporters the department follows all court orders and that immigration enforcement is mandatory, emphasizing that each removal contributes to public order and the rule of law. The agency also asserted it operates under statutory authority to execute removal orders despite criticism.

MyNorthwest

The ACLU’s latest accounting indicates the settlement’s reach exceeds 11,800 families, yet many remain detained or deported, suggesting the full impact may never be known. The judge who halted the 2018 separations described the practice as causing lasting, excruciating harm. Attorneys also note that families are increasingly fearful of filing paperwork and may miss the December deadline for asylum benefits provided by the settlement.

MyNorthwest

Ederson Galicia Alva was first taken from his mother in 2018, reunited after legal intervention, then separated again in June 2023 and deported to Guatemala’s highlands. A federal judge ordered their return to Florida, where Ederson expressed that the reunion felt miraculous. Upon arrival, immigration officials re-questioned Alva López, photographed her, and granted only a two-week humanitarian parole. She said her children are now worried the same separation could recur. Thousands of families must request cancellation of pending removal orders by December, and the legal-services contract for separated families expires in August.

MyNorthwest

• “DHS complies with all court orders, even as radical NGOs shop for the most favorable forum and activist judges seek to thwart our operations,” — Lauren Bis, Acting Assistant Secretary, Department of Homeland Security

MyNorthwest

• “every removal of an illegal alien helps restore order and reinforce the rule of law.” — Lauren Bis, Acting Assistant Secretary, Department of Homeland Security

MyNorthwest

• “lasting, excruciating harm.” — Federal judge who ordered the end of 2018 family separations

MyNorthwest

• “They’re going to worry that the same thing will happen again.” — Alva López, mother of Ederson Galicia Alva

MyNorthwest

• “Ederson said it felt like a miracle.” — Ederson Galicia Alva

MyNorthwest