Trump administration halts support for representing unaccompanied children in immigration court

The Trump administration on Tuesday stopped support for legal representation in immigration court for children who enter the United States alone, a setback for those fighting deportation who can’t afford a lawyer.

The Acacia Center for Justice says it serves 26,000 migrant children under its federal contract. The Interior Department gave no explanation for the stop-work order, telling the group only that it was done for “causes outside of your control” and should not be interpreted as a judgment of poor performance. The halt remains in effect until further notice.

The Interior Department and Health and Human Services Department, which oversees unaccompanied migrant children, did not respond to requests for comment late Tuesday.

Acacia says it runs the legal aid program through a network of 85 organizations nationwide that represent children under 18.

The halt comes shortly after the Justice Department briefly stopped support for other contacts to provide legal information and guidance to people facing deportation. It restored funding after being sued by advocacy groups.

People fighting deportation may hire attorneys at their own expense, but the government does not provide them. Groups that rely on federal support to represent children said the most vulnerable would suffer most under the decision to halt work on the $200 million contract.

“Expecting a child to represent themself in immigration court absurd and deeply unjust,” said Christine Lin, director of training and technical assistance at the Center for Gender & Refugee Studies.