Overview

• U.S. District Judge Sparkle L. Sooknanan granted a temporary restraining order protecting the lawsuit’s named child plaintiffs and set a hearing for Sunday afternoon.
• The National Immigration Law Center and other advocates sued, alleging the planned removals violate statutory safeguards for unaccompanied children and due process.
• The Office of Refugee Resettlement told shelters that Guatemala requested the return of selected children and directed that they be prepared for discharge within two hours, or four hours for foster care.
• Attorneys reported some children were moved from shelters overnight despite the order and said several have ongoing immigration claims and fear returning.
• Reporting indicates the coordinated repatriation plan targeted more than 600 Guatemalan minors in U.S. custody for return to parents or legal guardians in Guatemala.