Women and children crossing together illegally into the United States could be separated by U.S. authorities under a proposal being considered by the Department of Homeland Security, according to three government officials.
Part of the reason for the proposal is to deter mothers from migrating to the United States with their children, said the officials, who have been briefed on the proposal.
President Donald Trump has called for ending “catch and release,” in which migrants who cross illegally are freed to live in the United States while awaiting legal proceedings.
The policy shift would allow the government to keep parents in custody while they contest deportation or wait for asylum hearings. Children would be put into protective custody with the Department of Health and Human Services, in the “least restrictive setting” until they can be taken into the care of a U.S. relative or state-sponsored guardian.
About 54,000 children and their guardians were apprehended between October 2016, and January 2017, more than double the number caught over the same time period a year earlier. Currently, a federal appeals court ruling bars prolonged child detention.
NEW PROPOSAL TO DETER IMMIGRANT FAMILIES FROM CROSSING TO US
