U.S. states sue Trump administration over family separation

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press


GENE JOHNSON
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
PUBLISHED 59 MINUTES AGO

Seventeen states, including Washington, New York and California, sued President Donald Trump’s administration Tuesday in an effort to force officials to reunite migrant families who have been separated at the U.S.-Mexico border.

The states, all of which are led by Democratic attorneys general, joined Washington, D.C., in filing the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Seattle. It’s the first legal challenge by states over the practice.

“The administration’s practice of separating families is cruel, plain and simple,” New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal said in an emailed statement. “Every day, it seems like the administration is issuing new, contradictory policies and relying on new, contradictory justifications. But we can’t forget: the lives of real people hang in the balance.”

Immigration authorities have separated about 2,300 children from their parents in recent weeks, sparking global outrage as images and recordings of weeping children emerged. Many parents are in custody thousands of miles from their children, whom they have not been able to see and have rarely spoken to for a month or more.

Read more: https://beta.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-us-states-sue-trump-administration-over-family-separation/

[Judi Lynn]

1. Seventeen states sue Trump administration over family separations

States including New York, California and Washington filed lawsuits accusing government of denying people their rights

Lauren Gambino

@laurenegambino
Tue 26 Jun 2018 14.32 EDT

Seventeen US states led by Democratic attorney generals are suing the Trump administration in an effort to force officials to reunite migrant families separated at the border.

In the latest setback for Donald Trump’s “zero-tolerance” immigration policy, the states, which include New York, California and Washington, filed lawsuits on Tuesday accusing the government of denying migrants their rights.

“The administration’s practice of separating families is cruel, plain and simple,” New Jersey attorney general Gurbir Grewal said in a statement. “Every day, it seems like the administration is issuing new, contradictory policies and relying on new, contradictory justifications. But we can’t forget: The lives of real people hang in the balance.”

More than 2,300 children have been separated from their parents at the US-Mexico border in recent weeks and placed in government-contracted shelters hundreds of miles away. Following uproar on both sides of the aisle, and internationally, Trump last week signed an executive order to end the controversial practice.

More:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/jun/26/us-retreats-on-zero-tolerance-policy-but-many-families-wont-be-reunited-soon