Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson has significantly different ideas about what’s considered “legal” than the Trump administration, and the policy of separating migrant families at the border is no exception.
Ferguson announced on June 26 that he would lead a coalition of 16 states and the District of Columbia in challenging the policy, which he argues was not fixed by President Donald Trump’s executive order. The executive order, which purportedly ended the family separations, does not provide for the reunification of more than 2,000 children with their families. It also opens the door to indefinite detention of minors, setting up a conflict with a Ninth Circuit ruling that found that children could be detained for only 20 days.
According to the press release, approximately 200 immigrants were detained in Washington state as of June 19. Of those, 174 were women and more than one-third had been separated from their children.
Though the policy of family separations has been in place since April, the issue caught fire in recent weeks after stories about the conditions in the detention facilities and audio of children in distress went public.
“This is a rogue, cruel and unconstitutional policy,” Ferguson said in the June 21 press release. “We’re going to put a stop to it.”
Once filed, this will mark the 27th time that Ferguson has sued the Trump administration.
Ashley Archibald is a Staff Reporter covering local government, policy and equity. Have a story idea? She can be can reached at ashleya (at) realchangenews (dot) org. Follow Ashley on Twitter @AshleyA_RC
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