DHS begins targeting unaccompanied children with 'voluntary' deportation offer

The Department of Homeland Security has begun targeting unaccompanied children in the immigration system with what they call a “voluntary option” to return to their countries of origin.

Lawyers representing children who entered the country apart from their immediate family have told LAist they are deeply concerned about the program because it appears children will be asked to waive their rights to see an immigration judge before being removed from the country.

This effort by DHS comes after the department attempted earlier this year to stop funding a program to provide legal support to children in the immigration system. All funding to the program was halted in March but ordered by District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín to resume in April in accordance with the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act and federal policies. Last month, 76 undocumented minors were nearly flown to Guatemala in the middle of the night, before the deportations were stopped by District Judge Sparkle L. Sooknanan.

Representatives for DHS and HHS have not immediately responded to LAist’s requests for comment.

What we know so far

Unverified reports spread through social media and immigration rights advocate circles Thursday, citing supposedly leaked information about an Immigration and Customs Enforcement action called “Operation Freaky Friday” set to begin today.

The reports suggested ICE was planning to send “offer” letters to unaccompanied children in the immigration system 14 years and older, where they would be promised $2,500 in return for waiving their rights to see an immigration judge.

It was also claimed that if children refused the offer they would be detained upon turning 18 and their family members living in the U.S. would also be arrested. Plans to threaten detention or arrest have not been independently verified by LAist.

In a social media post today, a spokesperson for DHS denied the name of the operation, saying that it was made up by “anti-ICE activists,” but acknowledged that there is now a program in place that is similar in some regard to what was shared in the unverified reports.

“ICE and the Office of Refugee and Resettlement at HHS [Department of Health and Human Services] are offering a strictly voluntary option to return home to their families,” the DHS account wrote, also referencing an option for “access to financial support when returning home.”

Unaccompanied children are required to be transferred to the custody of the Office of Refugee and Resettlement, known as ORR, shortly after they are detained by DHS according to a legal settlement made by the federal government in 1997.

In an email from HHS to legal service providers that was shared with LAist, HHS confirmed that DHS will provide $2,500 to undocumented children 14 years or older who take the offer, excluding minors from Mexico or those who have left their custody.

What lawyers are saying

Yasmin Yavar, deputy director for the American Bar Association’s Children’s Immigration Law Academy, told LAist that children who take this offer could end up waiving their rights.

“[The offer is] problematic because they are giving up their opportunity to be before a judge,” Yavar said, adding that children may not understand the consequences of that choice.

Yavar said that children who are detained and in the custody of ORR are supposed to get a “Know your Rights” presentation and be able to consult with an attorney to provide information about their rights and responsibilities.

Mickey Donovan-Kaloust, legal services director at Immigrant Defenders Law Center, told LAist in an emailed statement that they represent hundreds of unaccompanied children and that the $2,500 incentive “has the potential to exploit their unique vulnerabilities as unaccompanied minors in government custody.”

The DHS social media post defended the move saying many unaccompanied children had no choice in coming to the U.S. and would be returning to family outside the country.

Multiple lawyers who spoke to LAist said that unaccompanied children commonly live with family in the U.S., and that federal regulations direct ORR to prioritize releasing children to parents or immediate family members in the country while they go through immigration court.

Some lawyers say that taking this offer could put children at greater risk.

“ It is really difficult to explain to kids what their rights are in not just clear language, but also child-friendly language,” said spokesperson Bilal Askaryar from the Acacia Center for Justice. He said the idea that an agent with no background in child welfare could get their informed consent to sign something that returns them to danger is “deeply troubling and it's cruel.”

This story was produced with help from the California Newsroom, a collaboration of public media outlets throughout the state.