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1 (July 31, 2018)

handle is hein.crs/crsmthzzbdi0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional ________ ~~~ ~~~nforrn ng the Iegs lative debate snce 1914___________________ Family Separation at the Border and the Ms. L. Litigation Sarah Herman Peck Legislative Attorney July 31, 2018 The separation of families of non-U.S. nationals (aliens) apprehended by immigration authorities near the border has prompted contentious debate among policymakers as well as legal challenge to immigration detention policies. Trump Administration officials have called for legislation addressing family separation, while some lawmakers have urged the executive branch to modify current separation policies to ensure that families detained by immigration authorities are held or released from custody together. On June 20, 2018, President Trump issued an executive order announcing that it is the policy of this Administration to maintain family unity, including by detaining families together where appropriate and consistent with law and available resources. At the time the executive order was issued, there was a pending lawsuit, Ms. L. v. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, challenging on substantive due process grounds the practice of separating alien families at the border. And notwithstanding the June 20 executive order, on June 26, 2018, the presiding district judge considering the challenge ordered the Trump Administration, subject to exception, to (1) stop the practice of separately detaining alien parents and minor children who had lacked authorization for admission to the United States and who were apprehended by immigration authorities at or between designated ports of entry along the border, and (2) reunite within weeks all separated alien parents and their minor children. Additionally, the court later issued a temporary restraining order blocking the government from deporting alien parents until they have been reunified with their children for at least one week so that parents can make an informed, non-coerced decision if they are going to leave their children behind pending the child's separate immigration proceedings. Though at least some policies that resulted in family separation reportedly have been modified or ended, litigation relating to these policies remains ongoing. This Legal Sidebar explores the underlying policies resulting in family separation, the due process issues arguably implicated by these policies, and the political and judicial processes invoked to tackle the issue of family separation. Congressional Research Service 7-5700 www.crs.gov LSB10180 CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Conaress