A federal judge issued a temporary halt to the deportation of roughly 600 Guatemalan unaccompanied children after attorneys said the children lacked an opportunity to contest removal. The emergency order came in the early morning as some children were reportedly sitting on planes in Texas. The judge held an emergency hearing and cited conflicting narratives from government lawyers and children’s attorneys. The Trump Administration described the removals as a pilot program coordinated with Guatemala. The judge granted a two-week pause, and officials reported all children remain in U.S. custody and flights are suspended for now.
A federal judge early on Sunday morning blocked President Donald Trumps administration from deporting hundreds of Guatemalan children with the order coming as some of the kids were sitting on planes in Texas, ready to be sent back to their home country. U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan in Washington, D.C. temporarily halted the move at 4:00 a.m. ET, after attorneys for the roughly 600 kids said they did not have a chance to contest their deportation.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General Drew Ensign, according to ABC News, said it was possible one flight with some children had taken off for Guatemala before returning to the U.S. Ensign said all the kids were in the custody of the U.S. government and no flights would happen for the time being, following the judge's order.
I have the government attempting to remove minor children from the country in the wee hours of the morning on a holiday weekend, which is surprising, but here we are, the judge said at the hearing, Politico reported. Sooknanan added she was getting conflicting narratives on the plan from the Trump Administration and attorneys for the children.
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