An 8-year-old Haitian boy who lost his temporary protected status earlier this year has been taken into federal custody after an immigration check, according to local advocates and school officials.
The third-grader, who attends Fay Elementary School in San Diego, was placed in government custody alone after attending an Immigration and Customs Enforcement meeting with his uncle on Thursday, according to his school district and an advocacy group.
“The eight-year-old was sent a letter to meet with an ICE agent,” the San Diego Unified School District said in a letter to DHS. “His uncle, who he has lived with since the child’s father was deported over a year ago, took him to meet the officer because he did not want to break the law.”
New ICE center to house families and unaccompanied minors could open in Louisiana next week
Advocates and school officials said the boy lived with his uncle and cousins after his father was deported to Mexico last year.
“They did not give the father the opportunity or chance to set up legal guardianship for the child,” said Guerline Jozef, executive director of the nonprofit Haitian Bridge Alliance.
SDUSD board member Cody Petterson told ABC News the uncle was named in school records as a licensed caregiver.
Charles Reed/ICE – PHOTO: A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Dallas, Texas.
An ICE spokesperson told ABC News in a statement that because the uncle was unable to establish legal guardianship, agents treated the 8-year-old as an unaccompanied child under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, a federal law that provides protection to unaccompanied immigrant children.
The agency did not allege any wrongdoing or abuse by the uncle, but cited the law to require the child’s transfer after designating him as an unaccompanied minor.
“Out of an abundance of caution and to ensure the child’s safety, ICE determined it was best to remove the child from the home and place him or her in the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement,” the spokesperson said.
According to the school district and an advocacy group, the 8-year-old remains in ORR custody. It is unclear whether he will be deported from the United States
Jozef called the detention “a pretext for (ICE) to remove the child and potentially subject him to deportation proceedings.”
Democrats pressure HHS over legal representation for migrant children
“He was very well dressed and we take very good care of him,” added Jozef. “There is absolutely no reason for them to remove him from his loved ones without putting proper procedures in place for him, knowing full well that ICE has already deported the father.”
In the letter to DHS, San Diego Unified School District officials said they have “witnessed situations where children who should be attending school and participating in a supportive educational environment instead end up in government facilities.”
“Children should not lose access to education simply because of the circumstances unfolding around them,” the district said.
Gn usa
