Citing COVID-19 concerns, a federal judge ordered US officials on Friday to release immigrant children detained at facilities for families by July 17.
“The [family residential centers] are ‘on fire’ and there is no more time for half measures,” US District Judge Dolly Gee wrote.
The order comes a day after an independent monitor tasked with tracking how children in family detention centers are treated as part of a long-standing court agreement said 11 immigrants held inside a Karnes City, Texas, facility had tested positive for COVID-19. The independent monitor said the risk of immigrant minors and families contracting coronavirus inside one of the facilities continued to grow because some staffers failed to wear masks or observe social distancing requirements.
