The Trump administration will make a case in court to end a longstanding settlement governing detention conditions for immigrant children, including how long they can be held by the government.
A hearing is scheduled before a federal judge Friday in Los Angeles over the so-called Flores settlement. The administration contends the 1997 agreement should be terminated since authorities have since issued new rules for custody conditions for children caught on the border.
But immigrant and youth advocates say the rules fail to honor the settlement terms and would let the U.S. government keep children locked up indefinitely and in facilities that aren’t licensed by the state.
The rules are one of a series of measures taken by the administration to crack down on asylum seekers on the Southwest border.