US border: unaccompanied children detained by the border patrol for an average of 77 hours

US border: unaccompanied children detained by the border patrol for an average of 77 hours

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The Customs and Border Protection documents dated Tuesday show an increasing trend of unaccompanied children staying in US custody at levels beyond the Department of Health and Human Services’ ability to shelter them, given the limited capacity of shelters due to coronavirus pandemic.

On average, in the past 21 days, the United States Border Patrol, part of Customs and Border Protection, has arrested approximately 340 children who have crossed the United States’ border with Mexico on their own, according to preliminary data described in the document. The average time at the Border Patrol facilities, which are not designed to contain children, was 77 hours, more than the 72 allowed by United States law.

The pressure on capacity is an indicator of the enormous challenges facing the department.

In Yuma, Arizona, there were more than 600 people – of all ages – in custody in a space designed for 104, according to the data. And in the Rio Grande Valley, more than 2,000 people were taken into custody in one spot for 715. The numbers may fluctuate daily.

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The Biden government has been reluctant to call the situation on the US border with Mexico a crisis, rather than referring to it as a challenge.

“It is a stressful challenge. That is why, frankly, we are working just as hard, not only to face the urgency of the challenge, but also to build the capacity to manage it,” said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, in the White House on Monday.

Increasing number of arrests

Customs and Border Protection officials are the first to contact children crossing the United States’ border alone. After being taken into the custody of the Border Patrol, unaccompanied children are handed over to HHS.

During the Trump administration, border officials rejected the vast majority of migrants, including children, returning to Mexico or their countries of origin, using a public health order related to the pandemic.

Although the Biden administration has continued to rely on this policy, it is no longer applying it to unaccompanied children and some families, resulting in more people in custody.

In January, more than 5,800 unaccompanied children and nearly 7,500 families were taken into custody by Customs and Border Protection at the US-Mexico border, according to the agency’s most recent monthly data since December. The numbers are expected to increase.

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A former Homeland Security official characterized the upward trend as reminiscent of 2019, when border officials found a record number of unaccompanied migrant children and families, resulting in depleted facilities.

“The rate at which people are crossing borders is exceeding the levels we saw in 2019,” said the former official.

in January 2019, the year in which there were peaks at the border, the Border Patrol found 5,515 unaccompanied children.

“The challenge now is, in addition to the limited capacity, you have a Covid umbrella over everything, which restricts HHS’s ability to get people out of custody, with the additional historical problems that ORR had when facing the operational challenge at the border “, the official added, referring to the Refugee Resettlement Office, the federal agency under HHS in charge of caring for migrant children.

Customs and Border Protection recognized the increase in border crossing.

“The number of border meetings has been increasing since April 2020, due to several factors, including continued violence, insecurity and hunger in the North Triangle countries of Central America,” the agency said in a statement to CNN. “As always, the number of individuals crossing the border continues to fluctuate and we continue to adapt accordingly. We cannot share the specific number of (unaccompanied minors) found, out of the monthly totals, as they are sensitive to law enforcement. . “

Limited shelter capacity

To expand the capacity to house migrants, CBP has opened a “soft-sided” structure in Donna, Texas, and is building another one in Eagle Pass, Texas. At least four more “flexible” facilities are being considered, although the locations have not been defined, according to a senior DHS official. Additional Border Patrol agents are also being deployed to assist with processing.

As a result of the pandemic and precautions to prevent the spread of Covid-19, HHS can only use just over half of the beds it has for children. This means that children stay in border facilities that are not intended for their care for longer periods.

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“We are not following,” an HHS official told CNN this week, referring to the department’s ability to care for unaccompanied migrant children. As of Tuesday, capacity was about 94% full.

The Department of Homeland Security is exploring placing HHS personnel on border patrol posts to immediately begin the placement process and determine whether a child has a relative in the United States, Mayorkas said on Monday, calling it “reengineering.” “of the process.

In a separate effort to speed up sponsor verification for children, HHS is working on a data technology system that would update information in real time and connect with the FBI for background checks, reducing hours, if not days, of the process. without cutting costs, said the HHS official.

Until a child is released to a sponsor, however, HHS still needs to find space to place him in his shelter network.

The agency is adjusting its guidelines, in coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to make more beds available online, loosening some of the precautions put in place at the beginning of the pandemic. This includes double masks, encouraging the vaccination team, adding more exams, placing children to allow more than one per room and installing more licensed facilities.

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