Full Breakdown
Rapid Advancement of Unaccompanied Children’s Removal Cases
8/20/2026, 10:15:53 PM
Accelerated Removal Proceedings
Immigration judges across the United States are now moving unaccompanied migrant children through removal hearings in as little as three weeks. In a Manhattan hearing on Aug. 5, a Guatemalan teenager appeared by video from a Bronx shelter and was told he had until Aug. 18 to submit an English-language asylum explanation—despite lacking a lawyer and speaking only K’iche’, an indigenous Mayan language. The judge relied on two interpreters, one for Spanish and another for K’iche’. The teen was among nearly 50 children heard that day, reflecting a broader push to limit continuances for minors who entered the U.S. without a parent or guardian.
Key Data
- The median pending time for unaccompanied children’s cases was nearly 2,400 days (over six years), according to Department of Justice data as of July.
- Continuance grants for this group fell from about 80 % at the start of the second Trump administration to 46 % in June, based on Mobile Pathways analysis.
- “In-absentia” removal orders for unaccompanied children roughly doubled between January 2025 and June 2026, mirroring similar rises for accompanied children and adults.
- Children in government custody average more than 180 days as of July, according to the same DOJ data.
Official Statements & Responses
She added that “unnecessary delay hurts both aliens with meritorious claims and the American public who wish to see aliens with non-meritorious claims removed as quickly as possible.” Chief Immigration Judge Teresa Riley circulated a June 29 email praising judges with the highest case-completion numbers and noting that “the completions per judge” would be shared with assistant chief judges to align performance.
Verbatim Quotes
- “There’s complete disregard for the young people that are sitting in front of them,” — Sierra Kraft, executive director of the Immigrant Children Advocates’ Relief Effort
- “There’s a lot of work to do to actually get to the point of getting all of those kids, many of whom aren’t kids anymore, into removal proceedings and get their cases going,” — Andrew Arthur, a former immigration judge
- “Unnecessary delay hurts both aliens with meritorious claims and the American public who wish to see aliens with non-meritorious claims removed as quickly as possible,” — Kathryn Mattingly, spokesperson
- “Part of your role as a judge in a children’s proceeding is to determine to what degree they understand what is happening and then ameliorate that so that there is no constitutional issue,” — Carmen Maria Rey Caldas
- “We’re seeing children essentially having adults have a conversation around them that will lead to their removal without having anyone in their corner,” — Roxana Avila-Cimpeanu, deputy director of the Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project in Arizona
